The pill is red.

It sits on the tongue.

It tastes of iron.

It tastes of rust.

It tastes of old coins.

It is the only thing that is real.

The rest is smoke.

The rest is noise.

The city hums.

The gears turn.

The steam rises.

You are here.

You are in the room.

The room is white.

The light is cold.

The man stands by the door.

His coat is grey.

His eyes are black.

He looks at the pill.

He looks at you.

"You took it," he says.

His voice is soft.

His voice is sharp.

It cuts the air.

It cuts the silence.

It cuts the skin.

You nod.

You do not speak.

Words are heavy.

Words are stones.

You drop them.

You keep the pill.

The pill is small.

The pill is strong.

It is your heart.

It is your blood.

It is your mind.

It is the thing that keeps you whole.

Without it, you are nothing.

Without it, you are empty.

Without it, you are dust.

The man steps closer.

He holds a vial.

The vial is glass.

The vial is clear.

Inside is blue.

The blue is bright.

The blue is cold.

It looks like water.

It looks like ice.

It looks like death.

"Take this," he says.

He holds it out.

His hand is steady.

His hand is cold.

You look at the blue.

You look at the red.

The red is in your mouth.

The blue is in his hand.

One is life.

One is erasure.

One is you.

One is them.

They want to erase you.

They want to fix you.

They want to save you.

They think they are saving you.

They are wrong.

They are blind.

They see a monster.

They see a danger.

They see a flaw.

They do not see the fire.

They do not see the light.

They do not see the truth.

You spit the red pill.

It lands on the floor.

It rolls.

It stops.

It is broken.

It is dark.

The man frowns.

His face is tight.

His mouth is thin.

He is confused.

He is angry.

He does not understand.

Why do you refuse?

Why do you reject?

Why do you break?

You do not know.

You do not care.

You look at the blue.

You take the blue.

You put it in your mouth.

It tastes of nothing.

It tastes of ash.

It tastes of silence.

It tastes of end.

You swallow.

The room spins.

The light fades.

The walls move.

The floor tilts.

You fall.

You rise.

You are gone.

You are back.

The man is gone.

The room is gone.

The city is gone.

You are in the street.

The street is wet.

The rain is cold.

The rain is hard.

It hits your face.

It hits your skin.

It hits your eyes.

You open your eyes.

The world is bright.

The world is loud.

The cars are fast.

The people are fast.

The time is fast.

You are slow.

You are still.

You are alone.

You walk.

You walk to the bridge.

The bridge is stone.

The bridge is old.

The bridge is strong.

You look down.

The river is dark.

The river is deep.

The river is moving.

It moves like blood.

It moves like time.

It moves like life.

You hold the red pill.

It is in your pocket.

It is whole.

It is warm.

It is yours.

You took the blue.

You gave the red.

No.

You kept the red.

You gave the blue.

You gave them what they wanted.

You gave them the silence.

You gave them the peace.

You gave them the death.

You kept the fire.

You kept the pain.

You kept the truth.

The truth is bad.

The truth is hard.

The truth is heavy.

But it is yours.

You climb the bridge.

You walk away.

The city grows.

The city swallows you.

The gears turn.

The steam rises.

The smoke covers the sun.

You are small.

You are small.

You are small.

But you are here.

But you are real.

But you are you.

The memory comes back.

It comes like a wave.

It comes like a blow.

It is bright.

It is sharp.

It is clear.

You were a child.

You were in the kitchen.

The kitchen was warm.

The kitchen was gold.

Your sister was there.

Her name was Clara.

Her hair was dark.

Her eyes were bright.

She was laughing.

She was dancing.

She was alive.

You were watching.

You were holding the red pill.

It was a candy then.

It was a secret.

It was a gift.

She took it from you.

She put it in her mouth.

She swallowed.

She stopped.

Her eyes went wide.

Her mouth went open.

Her hands went out.

She fell.

She did not get up.

The room went cold.

The light went dim.

The world went silent.

You screamed.

You cried.

You ran.

You ran to the doctor.

You ran to the police.

You ran to the world.

They looked at you.

They looked at Clara.

They looked at the pill.

They said you did it.

They said you gave it to her.

They said you wanted her gone.

They said you were evil.

They said you were broken.

They were wrong.

They were blind.

They saw the pill.

They did not see the love.

They saw the act.

They did not see the accident.

They saw the result.

They did not see the grief.

They took you away.

They put you in the room.

They put you in the cage.

They tried to fix you.

They tried to erase you.

They tried to make you good.

They tried to make you normal.

They failed.

They always fail.

The justice is blind.

The justice is deaf.

The justice is dumb.

It sees the crime.

It does not see the soul.

It sees the act.

It does not see the heart.

It sees the body.

It does not see the spirit.

It is a machine.

It is a gear.

It is a stone.

It crushes.

It grinds.

It destroys.

You are the one who survived.

You are the one who remembers.

You are the one who holds the pill.

The pill is not a weapon.

The pill is a memorial.

The pill is a bone.

The pill is a tear.

The pill is the truth.

The truth is that you loved her.

The truth is that you lost her.

The truth is that you were punished for your love.

The truth is that the system is a lie.

The truth is that justice is a mask.

The truth is that mercy is a myth.

You walk on.

The rain stops.

The sun comes out.

The sun is pale.

The sun is weak.

The sun is cold.

It does not warm you.

It does not heal you.

It does not save you.

It just watches.

It just looks.

It just sees.

You are in the city.

The city is a beast.

The city is a machine.

The city is a hell.

You are in the hell.

You are in the fire.

You are in the pain.

But you are alive.

But you are free.

But you are you.

You reach the end of the street.

You reach the square.

The square is empty.

The square is quiet.

The square is still.

You sit on the bench.

The bench is wood.

The bench is old.

The bench is hard.

You take out the red pill.

You hold it in your hand.

It is warm.

It is alive.

It is you.

You look at the sky.

The sky is grey.

The sky is heavy.

The sky is falling.

You close your eyes.

You think of Clara.

You think of her laugh.

You think of her dance.

You think of her life.

You think of your love.

You think of your loss.

You think of your pain.

You think of your truth.

You open your eyes.

The city is there.

The city is waiting.

The city is hungry.

The city is cruel.

You stand up.

You walk away.

You walk into the fog.

You walk into the dark.

You walk into the end.

But you do not stop.

You do not stop.

You do not stop.

You are the fire.

You are the light.

You are the truth.

You are the pill.

You are the heart.

You are the soul.

You are the one.

You are the last.

You are the end.

And the beginning.

And the middle.

And the now.

And the always.

And the never.

And the yes.

And the no.

And the maybe.

And the maybe not.

And the perhaps.

And the perhaps not.

And the silence.

And the noise.

And the light.

And the dark.

And the life.

And the death.

And the love.

And the hate.

And the joy.

And the sorrow.

And the truth.

And the lie.

And the justice.

And the injustice.

And the system.

And the self.

And the other.

And the world.

And the void.

And the all.

And the nothing.

And the everything.

And the something.

And the maybe.

And the maybe not.

The pill is red.

It sits on the tongue.

It tastes of iron.

It tastes of rust.

It tastes of old coins.

It is the only thing that is real.

The rest is smoke.

The rest is noise.

The city hums.

The gears turn.

The steam rises.

You are here.

You are in the room.

The room is white.

The light is cold.

The man stands by the door.

His coat is grey.

His eyes are black.

He looks at the pill.

He looks at you.

"You took it," he says.

His voice is soft.

His voice is sharp.

It cuts the air.

It cuts the silence.

It cuts the skin.

You nod.

You do not speak.

Words are heavy.

Words are stones.

You drop them.

You keep the pill.

The pill is small.

The pill is strong.

It is your heart.

It is your blood.

It is your mind.

It is the thing that keeps you whole.

Without it, you are nothing.

Without it, you are empty.

Without it, you are dust.

The man steps closer.

He holds a vial.

The vial is glass.

The vial is clear.

Inside is blue.

The blue is bright.

The blue is cold.

It looks like water.

It looks like ice.

It looks like death.

"Take this," he says.

He holds it out.

His hand is steady.

His hand is cold.

You look at the blue.

You look at the red.

The red is in your mouth.

The blue is in his hand.

One is life.

One is erasure.

One is you.

One is them.

They want to erase you.

They want to fix you.

They want to save you.

They think they are saving you.

They are wrong.

They are blind.

They see a monster.

They see a danger.

They see a flaw.

They do not see the fire.

They do not see the light.

They do not see the truth.

You spit the red pill.

It lands on the floor.

It rolls.

It stops.

It is broken.

It is dark.

The man frowns.

His face is tight.

His mouth is thin.

He is confused.

He is angry.

He does not understand.

Why do you refuse?

Why do you reject?

Why do you break?

You do not know.

You do not care.

You look at the blue.

You take the blue.

You put it in your mouth.

It tastes of nothing.

It tastes of ash.

It tastes of silence.

It tastes of end.

You swallow.

The room spins.

The light fades.

The walls move.

The floor tilts.

You fall.

You rise.

You are gone.

You are back.

The man is gone.

The room is gone.

The city is gone.

You are in the street.

The street is wet.

The rain is cold.

The rain is hard.

It hits your face.

It hits your skin.

It hits your eyes.

You open your eyes.

The world is bright.

The world is loud.

The cars are fast.

The people are fast.

The time is fast.

You are slow.

You are still.

You are alone.

You walk.

You walk to the bridge.

The bridge is stone.

The bridge is old.

The bridge is strong.

You look down.

The river is dark.

The river is deep.

The river is moving.

It moves like blood.

It moves like time.

It moves like life.

You hold the red pill.

It is in your pocket.

It is whole.

It is warm.

It is yours.

You took the blue.

You gave the red.

No.

You kept the red.

You gave the blue.

You gave them what they wanted.

You gave them the silence.

You gave them the peace.

You gave them the death.

You kept the fire.

You kept the pain.

You kept the truth.

The truth is bad.

The truth is hard.

The truth is heavy.

But it is yours.

You climb the bridge.

You walk away.

The city grows.

The city swallows you.

The gears turn.

The steam rises.

The smoke covers the sun.

You are small.

You are small.

You are small.

But you are here.

But you are real.

But you are you.