This barbed wire cage that I am trapped in is closing. Crushing the soul out of my body. The cold barbs slowly sink in, penetrating my soft flesh. Pain courses through my body as I take my punishment. That one deed that finally caught up to me. The sharp points sink deeper into my skin. Blood pours from my wounds and all I can think about is that one unforgivable thing. The thing that so horribly landed me in this nightmare. Sticky, red blood lies at my feet for what I have done.

The tightening of the wire stops and in my mind it is over, but I haven’t a clue as to what is next. Then, as if out of thin air, an image appears. It is magnificent and beautiful. But as quickly as it appeared, it is gone. Nothing but a flash of blue and yellow flames rips the image away from me. The wire continues to be still, the barbs still inside me, but I cannot feel them.

I weep at such a sweet thing being so swiftly taken away. I begin to feel the cold metal inside of my body, the pain which it brings is bearable to the tragedy which I committed. It is only but imaginable the pain which the tragedy caused. A creaking sound pierces my ears and a pulling sensation appears throughout my body. The wire is being tightened again, but it has become jerky. Flesh falls from my body to the floor and the pain has once again returned. Images pop up and fade in the same way that happened before. All of the things that I have done to deserve this torture flood into my vision, but one keeps reoccurring. The one that ultimately brought this upon me. This image comes with a voice, a voice which constantly says in a sweet tone, “For up the stairs and down the hall, I know I can find your sweet taste.” I immediately recognize it as her voice.

I see myself at her feet begging her to please take me back. But no answer is give from her sweet lips. Pain darkens my vision. The wire has retracted form my body and it has returned to its cage form. I stand there naked, bloody, torn apart, and full of holes. My body is covered in crimson blood; red from head to toe. Chunks of flesh lie at my feet looking like they belong on the cold, black floor. But something is missing, and I know that it is not the flesh which resides on the floor, nor is it the blood which pools around me. Despair darkens my memories. Anger reddens my eyes. Fear freezes my nerves, but that emptiness never leaves.

I find what I am looking for in two pieces outside of my inescapable cage of horrifying wire. It sits there pulsing, like it is meant to, only it shouldn’t anymore. It should lie motionless where it is. My heart continues beating even though it is torn in two. The two pieces exist on the only white tile in this dimly lit chamber. As my hand passes out of the cage to try and retrieve it, the wire closes in on my arm. It digs its horrid points into my arm and I cry out in pain. Burgundy blood flows slowly over and around the wire. I pull my hand back and the cage releases its grip. I slam my hand forward in an attempt to grab my still beating heart, and I almost have it. Only two more inches and I can touch it. But the barbed wire cuts into my bicep with lightning speed. A coldness sprints up my arm and through my body as my vision darkens into nothing but black.

I wake up and find that my cage has shrunk, but my arm is no longer trapped in its unforgiving grip. I look over at my still pulsing heart and see that it is still within reach. But I have lost all hope of ever retrieving the thing which once drove this dismal body after my first pathetic attempts. The images and sounds reappear within the wire chamber. I scream in agony, but no one can hear me, or no one cares. I bang against the cage to call for attention, but all I get are my hands torn apart and bleeding even more. Nothing happens except that the dreaded wire closes in once more. The barbs sink into me once again. No sound comes from my lips, only a single blood red tear flows from my eye. I finally begin to scream, but not out of pain, out of sorrow. My cries for pity return unanswered, like nobody is even there. I beg for it to end and the only response I get is the barbed wire snapping taught, with blood dripping from the points of the barbs. Skin and muscle hang from the shiny metal. This torture will continue until my heart is mended and she no longer fears or hates me. Perhaps she will grow to love me as I loved her. But let me first find a way out of this dreary place. Let my torture end.