Flatline Diepreye Amanah After his tiny lips and soles turned blue, and his warm cotton breath ran cold, they shut the curtains and bolted the doors as if light would prevent him from appearing when they moaned his name. Then they took down the curtains, tinted the windows, painted the walls orange, repainted them beige, then gray. They burned his clothes and toys with the furniture, held hands, blamed each other, wore matching black. They tried to have another baby. They sold the house and moved away. Soon they smiled again, then suddenly stopped talking. The therapist said they would be okay. He packed his bags and slammed the door. She shaved her head, tossed her Bible, stared into the dark. She was found today cold, blue, still, but free. -Diepreye Amanah is a sophomore from Charlotte, NC, pursuing majors in Nutrition and English and a minor in Chemistry.-
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