In the Dark, Repetitive Coughing

Sometimes it is enough. Julia places her hands on the glass rooster. [1] There are jagged cuts in the sculpture that show where she is still possible to hurt. She sees again her father as he sliced the cockscomb with a blade before feeding it to the rooster. [2] Cancer is a bird of beauty. She is swallowed by the world that isn't watching. Her brother stands with a strange haircut. [3] In dreams of dying, there's a percentage of people who never wake up. She's been here six years. [4] When her family visits, they hug-ghost to ghost-and feel all the more foolish for taking indoor pictures with empty cameras.