Shadow
A Stolen Kiss
Pushing through curtain breaks, early morning sun casts broken rays of light across the room.
Shadows broken cast long against the floor, onto the wall, over the bed.
Light soaking into still sleeping eyes closed.
Not yet awake brain holding onto the dream of her still alive mother and young her.
Both of them in a never before seen park on a sunny warm summer day.
Red and white checkered picnic blanket is spread aver velvet soft green grass.
Sandwiches on paper plates, chips in a shared large bag of Lays sitting open in the picnic basket.
Between bites of sandwich, both her and her mother, flick away ants scouting, trying to invade, attempting to steal their food.
Flick, an ant soars through the air back onto the grass.
Flick and another ant flys into the green.
Flick and another ant is returned to its family. Flick and another ant is gone.
Chewing a bite of sandwich, flicking another ant back into the jungle grass, there is a sudden release of pressure on her left pointer finger. The guilty ant flicking finger.
Looking across the widening red and white checkered picnic blanket, her mother stops chewing her own bite of sandwich.
Her head cocks to the side as she is pulled away, the blanket bigger and bigger.
As the distance grows between them, her mother mouths, “who was that?”
Brain awake, eye lids still closed, she does not want to open them.
Alone in her house, she can still feel the release of pressure on her finger, someone letting go.
If she doesn’t open her eyes, she’ll never know.
She thinks maybe she’ll lay here until she dies.
Her left eyelid flutters, more sunlight shining in.
Her breathing still deep rhythmic, still in a state of sleep.
A shadow, broken in rays of sunlight, stepping towards the door.
The light coming from behind, there is no one to cast that shadow.
One-hundred and fifty-four beats per minute, her heart sprinting as she sits up in bed.
Looking towards the open doorway, a shadow foot disappears around the door jamb.
Breathing deep, breathing slow, breathing conscious, she slows her heart.
The shadow had to be the end of her dream, her mother walking away.
The dream lingering long enough to play a game of fuck fuck with her brain.
Heart slowed one-hundred beats a minute to about fifty-four, the goosebumps covering her body do not disappear.
The light sleeping t-shirt just doesn’t cover her butt when she stands, her nipples goosebump hard against light fabric.
Feet on the floor, she stands, steps towards the door leading to her living room and kitchen.
Thinking “get blackout curtains.”
Thinking “the light was playing tricks on your mind.”
Thinking “there was no one to cast a shadow.”
Thinking “why are my palms sweaty”.
Stepping into the living room, empty, the front door closed and locked.
Turning towards the kitchen, where the shadow turned, she takes one step stops.
Feet frozen to the hardwood floor, her heart is sprinting again.
Two shadows standing side by side, one head on the other’s shoulder, hands clasped together at their sides.
She is seeing the room spinning.
Shadow heads turn, shadow lips touch, kissing long the room spinning faster, little stars of light burst across her vision.
The shadows kiss long enough for her to feel her body go from rigid to almost limp.
Before she falls, the shadows turn, aware of her presence.
Her body is falling.
One of the shadows races towards her, four quick lunges, she feels pressure, a grasp onto her left pointer finger.
Before she can hit the floor, there is warm embracing pressure on her back, her mind goes empty black.
Opening her eyes, eyelids fluttering in bright light, she’s been out enough for the sun to move from her bedroom windows to the kitchen.
Light flooding the kitchen, she is alone.
Sitting up, she looks around the room, silent and empty but for her.
Looking down, her shadow mimics beneath her.
Palm of her hand pressed to the shadow palm against the floor.
Pulling her legs to her chest, shadow legs follow along against the floor.
Standing, pushing with her left hand, she looks up.
Had she looked a moment longer, she would have seen her shadow hand linger against the floor a second too long.
She is subconsciously opening and closing her right hand, flexing the fingers, rubbing her thumb across her fingernails.
She looks down hands still, at her side.
Across the floor, shadow hands rub together against shadow fingernails.