Girl buried alive beneath a mountain of coats. Put to rest
upon hand-embroidered fabric. It rubs her skin raw.
The chandelier clinks its glass prisms together
in mourning for what could have been. Dust motes dance
around the darkness of this gravesite. Lured from her home
with the promise of something sweet, she is boiling.
The girl gasps for air. Layers of wool, cashmere, and nylon
block her airway. When the others return for their coats,
they will find a lifeless body on the couch. Until then, she remains
entombed.
Girl buried alive escapes a mountain of coats. Oblivious hands
shovel fabric from her body, then pause. The chandelier screams
for the rescue to continue. Slivers of light pierce her eyes
as heavy winter jackets return to living forms. The girl flees
her burial site, shoving wool, cashmere, and nylon to the floor.
Blasts of freezing air calm her reddened skin.
Dust motes fall to the shag carpet as she walks away
from death. The crushed blue velvet of the couch
bears the outline of a girl,
exhumed.