Illusions and dreams

She was heading towards the door and accidentally glanced through the dirty window. The same black dog was lying on the concrete. She initially thought that he was dead and her heart filled with an indescribable sorrow. Or was he waiting for somebody? She approached the poor creature and it suddenly stood up. He seemed to recognize her. She smiled and wanted to pet him; she knew that a dog’s back was a safe bet, but she aimed at petting his face, carefully avoiding his ears. But the dog backed away. “I’m just a stranger for him” she thought and sighed. However, she didn’t want to give up. Slowly, the dog enjoyed the social interaction and looked straight into Emma’s eyes. “Hello again, you.” Emma had seen him for the first time the night before; same time, same place. It was as if she was reliving the previous night. The dog accompanied them to the next bus stop. Whenever they stopped, the dog stopped too. But it was different today: she was alone. There she was: sitting in the bus stop and asking herself whether she should try and touch him again. Of course she had a second attempt. The dog wasn’t backing away anymore and he lifted his crystal eyes at Emma. She quickly checked her left and right side. For a moment she thought that he was there. She then walked slowly towards the crosswalk and she saw that he was following her. She smiled again and reached for her Pall Mall. After lighting her cigarette she searched for his eyes. He disappeared. The street was empty. No sign of movement. Maybe she will never see him again.

She was sitting outside. It wasn’t cold outside for she was wearing only a t-shirt and a pair of jeans. The garden seemed beautiful, but empty. Like her heart. She suddenly decided to sit on the grass. Every blade of grass was loaded with fresh, cold drops. She was anxious to feel each and every one of them on her tired and bruised arms. She lied down with her head facing the cloudless sky. The first drops gently soaked the cloth of her shirt and she instantly felt relaxed. But she then decided to roll over. After doing so, she felt a faded pain on her stomach; she ignored it. She rolled over once more and the pain became more striking. After every roll, the pain was getting stronger. When it was more than she could take it, she decided to examine her body on the outside. Her yellow element tee was painted red and there were tiny holes here and there. She didn’t understand what had happened to her. She tried to touch the crimson stains but she immediately withdrew her fingers. Her entire body was covered in wounds: thousands of tiny thorns were scattered throughout her entire body. How could this be possible? She was sitting on grass, there were no rose bushes nearby. Words are not enough to describe the horror she felt when looking on her right. The ground and the green leaves of the rose bushes were soaked in her blood; the remaining thorns were blood stained as well. She felt warm tears rolling down her cheeks. She was alone, bleeding and hurting.