acid trip pt1
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"look how beautiful," she exclaims again and again. night falls out of her gaping pupils and clouds her iris. like a collapsed star she sucks in her surroundings. i catch her gazing affectionately at the red fire hydrant, the public transportation, the magnolia tree. she is immobilized by the white wrap-around porch, rock gardens, and contrasting burgundy barn against the illuminated blue sky. overhead trees bend and sway like pliable ballerinas to the music of the wind. the sun combs through the branches like a diamond barrette.
"i'm dreaming with my eyes open," i mumble lazily. sweat builds up on my forehead as goosebumps multiply across my arms and legs. my eyes flitter impatiently as my mind reacts slowly. i feel the hostility in my clenched jaw, tight unpainted lips, and balled fists. neglected, uncut nails dig against my palms. fingerprints swirl and lifelines curl as new stories unfold in my skin.
she falls effortlessly in love with the gray-haired woman slumped casually over her lawnmower, her legs wide as if she were a man. and it occurs to me, as i examine the half moon prints left scattered by my nails about my skin, that the stories are void of passion. that i am passionate about nothing. and that she, lying carelessly next to me on the leaf-patterned blanket, is passionate about everything.