Black Liquid

A nocturnal shadow weeps a tear of death; with each drop, a blossom of the reaper's rose unfolds. I hear the faint sound of water dripping. Drip, drip, drip. But it is not water. I touch it and suddenly find myself embraced by a fleshy pulse. Te-dunk, te-dunk, te-dunk. The rhythm quickens. What is this? A rush? A heartbeat?

The tub overflows with a thick black liquid. The heart has stopped. I crawl out of a mouth tangled with webs, only to see blood-dried razors lying beside a body. But wait—what body? I am gone. There was never anything. I hear the drip again and move toward it. Yet, it's just a circle with no end.

My mind is swelling with hollow words. If I cannot feel pain, then why does it ache inside? In the distance, a door looms—cold, steel, and uninviting. Its surface burns against my touch as I shove it open, revealing air that sears my skin. With every step forward, I feel myself shrinking. But was I ever truly big?

Who sees? Who hears? Who will tell? Every thought spirals back into a well of despair, replenished endlessly by depression. Plunk. My foot strikes something warm. I lift my gaze to see a faint light. Stairs ascend toward a distant hole. Climbing them feels like an eternity trapped in a repetitive cycle. My eyes glaze over as I approach the light, only to find nothing. No salvation. Just another dream slipping through my grasp, replaced by a black abyss—an endless pit.

When will I escape? I never will. I am enclosed in a sphere, a beautiful sphere of death. Yet a new light appears, and I cannot stop chasing it. Every beacon of hope reveals itself as another romantically tragic illusion.

In these nightly visions, a door appears—a rose engraved upon its surface, glowing blood-red. I open it to find a bathtub in a room painted with the soft hues of a lilac sky. The air carries the bittersweet scent of lavender and lemon. Drip, drip, drip. My head turns toward the faucet. Black liquid pours from it, slow and viscous.

The tub fills with deliberate, menacing grace, like molasses crawling toward its prey. The liquid reaches for me, inch by inch, climbing up my legs. With every breath I take, it pulls me closer to the black abyss.