In the ward 

Soft smoothed skinned arms 

Lined 

With half healed cuts mixed amid scars 

The upper arms 

Covered 

Dominated by the patients uniform 

Legs too 

The girl is in the confines of a monster 

In the confines 

Of a monster whose jaw is securely shut 

In the maw 

Where other creatures crawl 

And 

Other victims who’ve lost the map to life 

The meeting 

The doctor 

Sitting primly 

Expecting 

Expecting her to accept his truth 

He 

The Doctor 

Blindingly following his own secure system 

Too blind to see and accept the truth 

Wanting her to deny the extant monsters 

But 

Today he will have no luck 

Outside the office 

Despite the docs constant rebuttals 

Outside 

The door firmly closed 

Crawling monsters 

Aware 

How aware she is of the nurses stares 

She joins the Common area 

The Common area 

Her fellow patients 

Mingling around and with none sitting 

All surfaces 

Crawling 

Swarming 

Around 

All around on all visible surfaces 

Upon the floor 

Smears 

Black, gold, green, red 

Glittery parts 

Wings 

Bodys 

Body parts 

The nurses 

Staring at them 

Visible confusion 

Them 

With their circular migration 

The patients 

Unable to sit 

They circle 

They can stand the crunch and squish underfoot 

But 

Not 

Underneath them 

Leaving spots only they can see 

And the unwilling staff can not 

Hours pass like this 

A circular migration 

Hands 

Clasped 

Held deeply in pockets 

Unable to swat 

Soon 

But not soon enough 

The floor vibrates with a homing call 

And 

Relief 

Relief for the patients 

That Night at Dinner 

So 

New patient 

An address from a fellow patient 

The girl 

Listening intently 

Does not give him her attention 

“Give in to the doctor” 

The words 

Crawling ever so slowly across the table 

Get 

And 

Hold 

Her attention captive 

Eye contact is met 

“

You’ll get out sooner 

Away 

From this place 

It 

Seems to be the center of all 

“ 

Of all? 

“ 

Of all the evil penetrating this dimension 

“ 

She 

An approaching nurse 

Stops all further questions she may have 

Night Terrors 

The bugs remained away 

And 

The patients 

Retired to their afternoon leisures  

And 

The staff 

Stress reduced 

Went back 

Sank deeper 

Into their ignorance  

Bed time 

The time when the terrors reign merciless 

The girl was soon to discover this 

The ward door 

Locked 

The ward windowless 

The girl 

Could seek no comfort 

For 

The boy was in another ward 

And 

The staff 

Deaf to the yells and screams 

The homing call returns 

This 

Time in reverse 

Fellow women of the ward 

Some sane 

Some not 

Bugs with piercing stingers 

Some 

Massive and crawling 

Others 

Micro and burrowing 

Some terrorizing in a fashion 

Not unlike 

K

Welts 

Sores 

Bumps 

Bites 

Death 

Death to the bugs 

Popped out the skin 

Squished under foot 

Under hand 

And 

The occasional 

Sad death 

Of a patient 

Death 

From the countless bites and stings 

The death 

Marked by the staff as an overdose death 

And the patients 

Mourning silently at the casualty 

The Second Day 

Morning 

The womens ward 

They wake 

Full of loathing 

Having only received two hours of sleep 

They 

The women 

Fill their bellies and sleep 

The girl among them 

While 

The men 

The men 

They swallow their nerves and breakfast alike 

For 

Tonight is their turn 

And 

For now 

They keep watch