Pulchritude

[thatannoyingkid]

I lean forward, gently extending my fingers to grasp the sandy numbness encircling my feet, and my spine creaks like new leather. My bones move as frozen gears. I breathe in fully and feel my ribcage expand. I expel the tainted breath slowly, but with force. A deep aching radiates from my gut. I lay folded in on myself.

I'm crunching arbitrary numbers in my head, counting meaningless dates on meaningless charts. As my head swims, the beast exhales a sulfury warmth and sends a slow flurry of ashes upward. Mesmerized by their dance, I have no chance to quell the kindling uprising.