the sharp cold bit at me like rabid dogs,
spikes of cold stinging my fingertips;
my boots struck the snowy ground,
leaving behind deep indents;
beyond the ice snapping beneath my feet,
i could hear the shallow steps of two others.
did i really want to know?
my curiosity ate away at me like a ravenous vulture.
i looked over to my right to be pleasantly surprised;
a small boy, wrapped up in a small coat, topped off with a faded red beanie.
his toothy smile beamed in the winter wonderland he found himself in;
No worries in the world; No cares; No sadness;
the envy i felt.
to my left, i found myself looking at a lanky man.
his height was no question;
but his face...it was troubling.
his eyes had seen many things; his ears had heard a thousand screams.
the sadness within him was infecting.
his mouth opened to speak, but not a sound.
a wish to be heard flattened.
a flame flickering, begging to come alive;
then extinguished just as quick.
uneasy, i begin to walk away, distancing myself away from the figure.
but then, it began moving too;
towards me.
so enveloped by the lanky man, i forgot about the child.
i turned to my left, and saw him too walking towards me.
i ran.
they ran.
three lines, all parallel,
all with one way to go.
the cold rushed past my face, blowing back my hair and numbing my body.
we all kept running and running until finally…
I stopped.
They were me. I was them.
Three vessels. One soul.
I heard the footsteps stop.
I knew there was something behind me.
Maybe it was nothing at all.
I didn’t know what terrified me more.
I took a deep breath,
the winter air filling my lungs,
giving me life.
I turned around...to nothing.
Just me.
And one set of footprints.