surrounded by an eerie silence
and by frames with no pictures
darkness is setting
over the windows

a faint odor of burning flesh
creeps under the door
like a warning

there’s no place to hide
no niches in the walls
no mouse holes or closets
the panic room is wide shut
by my own fear

immune
to the sadness of things
with a rusty blade
i scratch their thin surface
biting my lips in frustration
looking for a gateway
to pass through