unabstracting the abstract

FEAR - Walk down an empty hallway at night. Moonlight from the window is all there is. Complete silence except for the creaking of floorboards. There are maybe two doors, one on each side of the hallway. They are both closed. Walk closer to the door on the right. Now there's a faint sound from behind it; it can't be made out, but it's there. White noise. Slowly and carefully turn the knob. The hinges sweak; WD-40 is in order. There is a clear view into the room. It's dark, but there is a small desk lamp that outlines the back of a figure. The sound is an odd hum that emanates from the figure. It sounds mechanical, not human. Approach the light and the figure. Sweaking again; the door closes behind you. The hum stops. Open up and try to say something, but words don't come out. Mute. The figure taps a foot on the floor. Notice a thick liquid pushing up through a crack between boards. The figure slowly turns. Stand paralyzed. Its face is pale and adorned with white pupils. The light brightens. A white eye blinks, producing a dark red tear. Hear a loud scream of a child or an animal. Butchered. The crack splits wide open and blood fills the floor. The walls seep red. The figure's hand reaches forward. Eyes closed. Eyes open. Sit up in bed, covered in sweat. Soaked. Look precariously around the room. Alarm clock says 3:43 AM. Turn on the bedside light and sit. Turn on the TV and sit. Don't sleep and just sit until the clock reads 7:00 AM. Nightmare.

LOVE - It's all you need... according to John and Paul.

*a work in progress - not finished yet*

NATURE - Overwhelmed by green and brown. Breath in the air and truly realize the surroundings. There is the smell of timber, the chirp of birds, and the feel of dirt below. Imagine a city without any people or pollution. That would be like this. Skyscrapers that are home to all except the human race. Without the threat of man, their magnificent structure can only be ruined by time. Kneel down and examine the grass. The fallen leaves. The weeds. The mushrooms. The animal shit. The bugs. Stand back up and continue on. There's a spring a little farther on. Look closer. Fish swimming. The grass gets taller. Take another deep breath. The air is light. Walk into the clearing and spot a still deer. Step on a branch and break it. The deer raises its head and stares. Go closer. It raises its tail and runs away, flashing white. Sit on a log in the middle of the clearing. Suddenly, there is a foreign sound. Grasp the log tightly. The loud sound gets closer. Steel. Fuel. Control the racing heartbeat. Overhead, a plane flies over, rumbling everything. Breath out. The sounds fades away. Back to normal. Flick the frog off the shoe. Laugh. Forest.

a precious prey

He crouched behind the bush, sweat droplets sliding down his forehead. He didn't dare make a sound. The sun blazed. As they cradled the steel-barreled elephant gun, his hands began to quiver. He could barely grasp the trigger with the moisture on his fingers. 100 yards out was his prey. He had ventured into the jungle before, but never to hunt such magnificence. His cold blue eyes widened as he glimpsed the beautiful ivory that would soon be his. The natural sounds drowned out; he could only hear the cocking. With the target in his sight, he caressed the trigger.

remains, human

The room is cold, dark, and concrete. No windows. A dirty white surgical light sits in the middle, illuminating an empty steel table on wheels. The far wall contains a door, six inches thick and made of some rusted metal. It gives the appearance that if one even touched it with bare skin, infection would be instantaneous. There is a steel padlock fixed on the door; it looks new and stands out from the door. The lock glimmers as dirty light hits it. It is unlocked. On the opposite wall, there is a long desk with shelves and drawers, a medicine cabinet, a sink, and a pale red light coming in from above. One might says it gives the appearance of a darkroom, but there are no photographs to be seen. In the right corner, there is a refridgerator, colored pink only from the overhead light. The two remaining walls are empty save for a few detailed posters and drawings of the human anatomy. The room is empty.

Suddenly, the door opens with a loud screech of old metal on concrete. For a moment, a light from the hallway outside brightens the entire room. On the floor, very apparent in the light, there are dark red stains scattered around the central table. A figure enters from the doorway and immediately closes it, securing the padlock with precision. The figure is carrying a large black garment bag. It is full of something and seems very heavy. As the figure sets the bag down and walks to the surgical light, a face is revealed. It is a man, probably mid-40s, with thin brown hair and grey eyes. He is wearing light teal medical scrubs under a black rubber apron. He whistles and casually walks over to the desk. From one of the drawers, he pulls out latex gloves and puts them on. The whistle now turns into a gentle hum.

He opens the medicine cabinet and a weak light inside comes on. There are seven small glass jars lined up on one of the shelves. Each one is has a handwritten label and resembles a baby food container. Also, each one appears to be filled with a yellow-colored liquid. Upon closer examination, there are objects in the jars, floating in the liquid. From left to right, the objects appear to be: ear, eye, finger, tongue, nose, teeth, and... empty. The gentle hum continues, only at a faster pace and with more enthusiasm. The man picks up the empty jar and holds it up. In the glass reflection, a wide smile appears on the his face. He purses his lips and kisses the jar. The medicine is closed and the jar it set on the desk.

The man now dances his way over to the refridgerator. As he opens the ice box, he sings an inaudible song. In the ice box, on a steel tray, is a frozen human head. The head is missing all of its distinctive features. The only thing remotely distinctive about it now is the number 31 carved into the forehead. The man breaks into a falsetto version of his song and closes the ice box. He skips back to the desk and opens another drawer. In this drawer there is an assortment of knives, scalpels, pliers, forks, and hammers. He extracts a curved blade and a small mallot and lays them out on the desk. Closing that drawer and opening the one below it, the man taps his foot, the rubber boot squeaking on the concrete. He takes out a power drill from the drawer and tosses it back and forth in his hands. Now, the song has reverted back to a whistle. He gathers his tools and carries them over to the metal table in the middle of the room. Then, the whistling stops. The man's smile fades and his eyes narrow. He reaches in a back pocket and brings out a tape recorder. Holding it to his mouth, he says:

"The sedative is wearing off."

The bag near the door begins moving.

restless: an excerpt from Sleep Away

Laying on the ground, looking at the sky and counting clouds, her eyes matched the grass. The park had always been Heather's favorite place to go when she wanted to clear her head. On her twelfth birthday, Heather's parents had given her two wheels, a green Schwinn Frontier Mountain Bike. Since then, she had biked to the park every day after school just to lay on the grass and sometimes, fall asleep and dream. After about 27, she lost count of the white bodies above her. At that moment, she would have given anything to be able to close her eyes and rest, but that was nothing but wishful thinking. This was the fifth day in a row that Heather had come to the park to try and fall asleep like she used to when she was younger...

Heather pedaled down the sidewalk with a swiftness unmatched. Her destination was the only thing on her mind.

*not finished yet - a work in progress*