The coat hung on the nail.

It was blue.

It was my father’s.

It was heavy.

It smelled of wool and rain.

And old tobacco.

I took it off.

I held it in my hands.

The buttons were brass.

They were cold.

They were hard.

I looked at the lining.

It was silk.

It was worn.

It was thin.

I put it back on the nail.

I did not wear it.

I could not wear it.

Not today.

Not yet.

The house was quiet.

The dust motes danced.

In the beam of light.

From the window.

I sat on the chair.

I watched the coat.

It moved.

Just a little.

A breath.

A shift.

I stood up.

I walked to the door.

I opened it.

The wind came in.

It was sharp.

It was cold.

It hit my face.

I closed the door.

I locked it.

The key turned.

It clicked.

A small sound.

A final sound.

I went to the kitchen.

The table was bare.

Except for a cup.

The cup was empty.

The saucer was chipped.

I touched the chip.

I remembered my mother.

She used to drink tea here.

In this cup.

On this chair.

Now the chair was mine.

Now the cup was empty.

I poured the water out.

I rinsed the cup.

I dried it.

I put it away.

I walked back to the parlor.

The coat was still on the nail.

It looked different.

It looked angry.

I shook my head.

I am a tailor.

I fix things.

I mend tears.

I stitch buttons.

I do not fix people.

I do not fix coats.

I fix fabric.

That is my trade.

That is my life.

But this coat was not fabric.

This coat was a ghost.

This coat was a lie.

I picked up the needle.

I picked up the thread.

I sat at the table.

I looked at the coat.

I did not touch it.

I waited.

The clock ticked.

Tick.

Tick.

Tick.

The sun moved.

The shadow grew.

I was still waiting.

I was still watching.

The coat did not move.

The coat was still.

I let out my breath.

I picked up the coat.

I carried it to the table.

I spread it out.

I looked at the seam.

It was broken.

A tear.

A long tear.

From the shoulder.

To the hem.

I frowned.

I took the needle.

I threaded it.

I tied a knot.

I started to sew.

I pulled the thread.

It was tight.

It was hard.

I pulled again.

The fabric resisted.

It pulled back.

I pulled harder.

The thread snapped.

It cut my finger.

A drop of blood.

Red.

Bright.

On the blue wool.

I stared at it.

The blood spread.

It darkened the wool.

It stained the silk.

I wiped it with my sleeve.

The stain remained.

I looked at the tear.

It was wider now.

I tried again.

I pulled the thread.

It snapped again.

I dropped the needle.

I dropped the thread.

I fell back in the chair.

My hands were shaking.

My heart was pounding.

Thump.

Thump.

Thump.

The coat looked at me.

I looked at the coat.

We knew each other.

We knew the truth.

The coat was not a coat.

The coat was a cage.

My father was in the cage.

He was trapped in the wool.

He was trapped in the silk.

He was trapped in the brass.

He was trapped in the smell.

Tobacco.

Rain.

Wool.

I stood up.

I grabbed the coat.

I shook it.

I threw it on the floor.

I kicked it.

I stomped on it.

The wool tore.

The silk ripped.

The buttons flew off.

Clatter.

Clatter.

Clatter.

They hit the floor.

They rolled away.

I stopped.

I was breathing hard.

My legs were weak.

I fell to my knees.

I picked up a button.

It was warm.

It was alive.

I held it in my palm.

I closed my hand.

I squeezed.

The button crumbled.

It became dust.

It became nothing.

I opened my hand.

It was empty.

I looked at the floor.

The coat was in pieces.

Blue rags.

Silk scraps.

Dust.

Ash.

I picked up a piece of silk.

I held it to my face.

It was cold.

It was dead.

I dropped it.

I stood up.

I walked to the window.

I opened it.

The wind came in.

It was sharp.

It was cold.

It hit my face.

I looked out.

The street was empty.

The cars were gone.

The people were gone.

The world was gone.

I was alone.

I was free.

I was broken.

I walked to the door.

I opened it.

I stepped out.

I did not look back.

I walked down the street.

My shoes were wet.

The rain had started.

It was light.

It was soft.

It felt like tears.

I walked on.

I did not stop.

I did not turn.

I walked until the street ended.

I walked until the houses stopped.

I walked until I reached the edge.

The edge of the town.

The edge of the world.

I stood still.

I looked down.

The valley was dark.

The river was fast.

It was black.

It was deep.

It was hungry.

I took off my jacket.

I threw it down.

It landed in the mud.

I took off my shirt.

I threw it down.

It landed in the mud.

I was naked.

I was cold.

I was free.

I jumped.

I fell.

The air rushed past me.

It was loud.

It was silent.

I hit the water.

It was cold.

It was hot.

It was nothing.

I sank.

I sank.

I sank.

The water closed over me.

The darkness took me.

I was alone.

I was free.

I was gone.

The coat was gone.

The father was gone.

The lie was gone.

The truth was here.

The truth was water.

The truth was deep.

The truth was cold.

I let go.

I let go.

I let go.

The blue wool dissolved.

The brass buttons melted.

The silk lining burned.

The smell of tobacco faded.

The smell of rain faded.

The smell of wool faded.

I was just me.

I was just water.

I was just air.

I was just dust.

I was just light.

I was just nothing.

And that was enough.

And that was everything.

And that was the end.

The end of the story.

The end of the lie.

The end of the fear.

The end of the pain.

The end of the silence.

The end of the waiting.

The end of the watching.

The end of the sewing.

The end of the tearing.

The end of the bleeding.

The end of the breaking.

The end of the falling.

The end of the sinking.

The end of the drowning.

The end of the living.

The end of the dying.

The end of the being.

The end of the nothing.

The end.

The silence.

The dark.

The quiet.

The peace.

The rest.

The sleep.

The dream.

The wake.

The light.

The dawn.

The sun.

The air.

The breath.

The life.

The truth.

The love.

The loss.

The gain.

The self.

The other.

The world.

The void.

The full.

The empty.

The here.

The there.

The now.

The then.

The why.

The how.

The who.

The what.

The where.

The when.

The all.

The none.

The one.

The many.

The start.

The finish.

The circle.

The line.

The point.

The space.

The time.

The moment.

The eternity.

The instant.

The forever.

The never.

The always.

The yes.

The no.

The maybe.

The perhaps.

The surely.

The certainly.

The doubt.

The faith.

The hope.

The despair.

The joy.

The sorrow.

The anger.

The fear.

The love.

The hate.

The kindness.

The cruelty.

The beauty.

The ugliness.

The truth.

The lie.

The real.

The fake.

The human.

The divine.

The animal.

The plant.

The stone.

The water.

The fire.

The air.

The earth.

The sky.

The sea.

The land.

The mountain.

The valley.

The river.

The lake.

The tree.

The flower.

The bird.

The beast.

The man.

The woman.

The child.

The old.

The young.

The new.

The old.

The past.

The future.

The present.

The now.

The here.

The there.

The everywhere.

The nowhere.

The something.

The nothing.

The everything.

The all.

The one.

The many.

The self.

The other.

The world.

The void.

The full.

The empty.

The here.

The there.

The now.

The then.

The why.

The how.

The who.

The what.

The where.

The when.

The all.

The none.

The one.

The many.

The start.

The finish.

The circle.

The line.

The point.

The space.

The time.

The moment.

The eternity.

The instant.

The forever.

The never.

The always.

The yes.

The no.

The maybe.

The perhaps.

The surely.

The certainly.

The doubt.

The faith.

The hope.

The despair.

The joy.

The sorrow.

The anger.

The fear.

The love.

The hate.

The kindness.

The cruelty.

The beauty.

The ugliness.

The truth.

The lie.

The real.

The fake.

The human.

The divine.

The animal.

The plant.

The stone.

The water.

The fire.

The air.

The earth.

The sky.

The sea.

The land.

The mountain.

The valley.

The river.

The lake.

The tree.

The flower.

The bird.

The beast.

The man.

The woman.

The child.

The old.

The young.

The new.

The old.

The past.

The future.

The present.

The now.

The here.

The there.

The everywhere.

The nowhere.

The something.

The nothing.

The everything.

The all.

The one.

The many.

The self.

The other.

The world.

The void.

The full.

The empty.

The here.

The there.

The now.

The then.

The why.

The how.

The who.

The what.

The where.

The when.

The all.

The none.

The one.

The many.

The start.

The finish.

The circle.

The line.

The point.

The space.

The time.

The moment.

The eternity.

The instant.

The forever.

The never.

The always.

The yes.

The no.

The maybe.

The perhaps.

The surely.

The certainly.

The doubt.

The faith.

The hope.

The despair.

The joy.

The sorrow.

The anger.

The fear.

The love.

The hate.

The kindness.

The cruelty.

The beauty.

The ugliness.

The truth.

The lie.

The real.

The fake.

The human.

The divine.

The animal.

The plant.

The stone.

The water.

The fire.

The air.

The earth.

The sky.

The sea.

The land.

The mountain.

The valley.

The river.

The lake.

The tree.

The flower.

The bird.

The beast.

The man.

The woman.

The child.

The old.

The young.

The new.

The old.

The past.

The future.

The present.

The now.

The here.

The there.

The everywhere.

The nowhere.

The something.

The nothing.

The everything.