Precipice Jade Fleming
Reality is difficult to prove when you think the ground is an illusion that is going to swallow you if you move if you breathe too hard and your lungs expand so you move that if you try to readjust the tightness of your pant waist then you move that if you blink you move that if you wipe the tears and snot and keep sniffling and rocking on the top of the desk you don’t remember sitting on but can feel because it is stiff and sfill you move and if it moves you move you can’t move so you hold your breath and don’t think about your nails in your arm meant to ground you while you don’t think about the ground that will swallow you if you breathe too hard and blink too much and don’t think about how no one is going to save you because no one is going to save you because no one saves the black kid and you didn’t want it to be about the black kid or violence or pain but it’s always about the black kid about violence about pain and it’s never about you it’s always about the money never about you it’s always about the food never about you it’s always about the grades never about you it’s always about the years of silence never about you it’s always about how you can’t exist and no one is going to save you because no one has time or thought to save you from the hole in the ground that is covered with a magician’s sleight of light you cannot move your thumb to scratch your palm because you will move and touch the ground and you will fall and the ground will open up and you will be swallowed if the notification rings it is a trick to get you to move to get you to the ground to get you to fall if the door knocks it is a trick how do you know there is another side if you can’t see the other side it is another illusion like the hole in the ground that will swallow you if you move if you touch the ground if you fall into the hole when no one knocks on the door when no one texts you when no one saves the black kid the wave passes you step on tile you leave the room to wash your face you wish the ground really could swallow you up
9
