The boy walks aimlessly around
A crown of wavy brown on top
and comfortable walking shoes on bottom.
He greets his mother
Stopping by every squirrel
Sniffing every flower
The tall building looms overhead
Blotting out his shadow
His complexion darkens, his eyebrows furrow
like the opposite of mitosis
Reaching the grand doors, he pauses



and listens
he hears the whine of the AC,
the groan of a golf cart
the delicate panting of a teenage boy
He whirls around, nothing.
The nearest person is out of sight
He turns slowly, and enters the cavernous room.
A whirl of leaves and a gasp of silent surprise
And a wave of darkness engulfs him.
His image, forever replicated among the shining walls
One, forced to leave, shuffles his feet along
The rest disperse among the absence, exploring
invisible hallways and staring at an explosion of nothing
waiting, hoping, dreaming, for another to follow.