Almost blue light stripes the stony grey of the floor
Of the hallway extending infinitely in front of me
My feet gently hit the linoleum as I turn
Right
Then left
Then right again
Continuing on
Following the nondescript labyrinth
Covering hundreds of feet of hall
Winding
Yet going nowhere

I don't try to escape
The twisting maze seems to be everything
At least enough for me

The bluish light surrounds
Artificial
Yet outshining all else
But there are no lights
No windows
And no doors
The walls are deserts of paint
Barren
But I don't mind

Security blankets me
The endless grey has become a familiar face
This is my home
My world

I'm walking
Walking
Walking
Studying the slate tones of the walls
The ceiling
And the floor
As if they held cryptic answers
A life to be lived

In the very periphery of my vision
A mirage shimmers
I know it is you
But I've never left the hall before
It is all I have ever known
But you are still as familiar as the omnipresent grey

You turn a corner
Fading from my sight
But not from my memory
The halls no longer seem looming
Infinite
Worldly

Then I see it
The door
Standing isolated in the middle of the hallway
Swirled with the richest browns
Coppery mahogany
Buttery chestnut
Fading together
A shock of warmth against the sterile lines

It emanates a strange gravity
Entrancing me
Pulling me closer
Until I am near enough to see each curve
Each stain
Of the wood

I notice something I hadn't before
A keyhole glimmers in the inexplicable light
Brighter than anything I've seen before
Brimming with lustrous gold

I put my eye to the hole
Curious for the first time
Ready to truly see
To fully understand
But a rosy mist clouds my vision
Of the other side

I walk to the other side
But I see the same door
A mirror image
No rosy mist
Until I again place my eye at the keyhole

Suddenly
I become aware of a subtle weight in my pocket
A pocket on my grey robes
One I'd never noticed before
Now drooping

Tentatively
I reach my hand in
The chill of metal startles me
I've never felt this fleeting numbing sensation
My fingers close
Around the curvaceous outline of what I instantly know to be the key
My gateway to another world

Now out of my pocket
It radiates eerily beautiful light
And slips into my heart a magnetic longing for the door

So I return to it
Closing my eyes
I preserve the linoleum floors and monochromatic walls in my mind
Before releasing an apprehensive  breath
And as if it were second nature
Turning the key

.

I put my palm against the slightly-warm wood
Pushing it forward
Until I'm across

A wall of radiant color engulfs me
More vivid than I ever thought possible

Burgundy
Crimson
Coral
Tangerine
Buttercup
Falling in ribbons

Emerald
Jade
Aquamarine
Cerulean
Sapphire
Wrapping me in brilliant streaks

Violet
Indigo
Fuchsia
Magenta
Misty rose
Swirling before my eyes

Slowly
The colors begin to fade
Paling, now weak imitations of their former glory
Before disappearing altogether

Then I see
You
Standing in the grassy clearing
Sunlight brushing your shoulders
Smiling back at me
Flesh and blood this time
Permanent
Alive

In your eyes
I see the ribbons of vibrant color
The swirls of rich wood
Grey lines
Brilliant sunlight
And liquid gold
The glow of life

We draw closer
To one another
And then I take your hand
Surprised by its utterly human warmth
As we turn to face the brilliant new world