The sand beneath my body feels like a memory foam pillow, covered in a silk case, caressing me
Waves are crashing – they’re a lullaby
My eyes are closed and my mind is drifting like the wood caught in a current

Hotter and hotter the day gets
Droplets of sweat begin to gather around my crown
The sand ***** crawl against my feet
I feel their pinchers dragging along the sides of my toes

Something is wrong.

My eyes are still closed tight – the second I open them the sun will temporarily blind me
More and more sand ***** gather around my ankles and feet
The air is dry
My eyes are now open – there is no longer a beach

I am now in a desert
Sand ***** turn into scorpions, and I’ve been stung
Suddenly, I am parched
There’s no water – I am beginning to see black spots
My skin is burning, and no one to help

I’m overcome by a sense of panic
Hundreds of scorpions are herding towards me
They’re coming from where the ocean once lived

I can get up, but I don’t want to.
Is the sun beating down hotter, or is the poison burning me internally?
It hurts; I can’t tell whether I’m dead or dying.

My hands are pushed against the ground
I’ve decided to get up, but now I can’t
My skin feels like it’s being burned off of my body.

Everything goes black, I can no longer see
I am hyperventilating and my mouth fills with salt water
Have I been drowning this whole time?
I am all alone, and this is what it feels like to be dying.

days upon days have passed giving me time to practice the words that I've wanted to share,
syllable by syllable, the words twirled together perfectly inside of my restless mind.

the day has come to recite all the words practiced -- nervous,
silence echoed off of the white walls and through the dark house.

your skin is soft -- I know, because it has brushed mine,
maybe you didn't notice.

you felt the chills as they pulsed out of my skin,
you knew that I was all yours for the taking.

I touched your neck.
I knew that you weren't mine.

I continue to look at the outline of your body,
you're beautiful.

It's too dark to look into your eyes, so I pretend.
They're empty.

you're the saddest of everyone that I know,
but when you smile, it's the happiest thing I've ever seen.