@abouteven: ☝️ tap my muse on the shoulder.
how long have you been staring into your coffee? — how long has it been staring back into you? mind zeroes in on the silence of old house, mentally wandering up && down halls once filled with life, now haunted by the ghosts of his youth. he can still hear the laughter of his siblings chasing each other around an obstacle course of furniture in the living room, his father && grandfather grumbling over how far the country’s fallen since kennedy’s assassination on the back porch, his mother && grandmother gossiping on the latest fashion trends as they cook dinner in the kitchen. they’re all dead now — gone, && you are alone. yet your heart refuses to stop, your flesh refuses to rot. there is a headstone with your name on it, but the earth below waits for a corpse that shall never be buried.
the floorboards behind him start to creak with each familiar step, && he is reminded of a rare truth he finds himself clinging to harder && harder as each day passes on. you are not alone in this life — not anymore.
❝ good morning, john, ❞ name is spoken like a prayer as he feels warm palm press into upper back, digits tapping a memorized rhythm against worn flannel. phantom pains fused into scorched skin cease in his presence, && you can’t help releasing the sigh bottled up in your throat. death’s touch breathing life into a body long past its expiration date — the irony still makes you smile. a pale hand, cold to the touch, reaches up to curl ‘round companion’s own as head turns for forehead to rest upon strong forearm. ❝ i’m sorry if i accidentally woke you up, did you sleep well? i know it was raining last night, ❞ voice is soft as grip tightens slightly, eyes staring blankly as the echo of a hatchet whizzes past his ear, his thoughts threatening to be drowned out by humming tune. ❝ i can never get any sleep when it rains, you know. ❞
