Infection

There are horrors,

Unannounced but omnipresent,

That scare even shadows,

Back into their hovels,

Whimpering as they watch;

Watch real monsters.

They do not swallow you whole,

Tear and bite with fanged jaws,

Nor shred nor scrape,

With strong talons,

But rather seep under skins,

And fester in dark depths of souls.

They catch in the chest,

And stew in the throat,

And give chase in the brow,

Clutching and squeezing your heart,

Trembling your hands with their treble;

A screech only you can hear treble.

These are frights slow and purposeful,

Bored with theatrics and brevity,

Preferring instead to lurk within,

And haunt you in your stillness,

A horror of your very own;

One you’ll never know you share.

#HI