dark am i, yet lovely, a lily among thorns, majestic as stars in procession

dark am i, yet lovely, a lily among thorns, majestic as stars in procession
WHY DESTROY YOURSELF? WHY DIE BEFORE YOUR TIME? THE KEEPERS OF THE HOUSE TREMBLE. DESIRE IS NO LONGER STIRRED. DO NOT CONFORM ANY LONGER TO THE PATTERN OF THIS WORLD.

Saturday, 8 February 2025

The Take-Over

It was a really rough night. I spewed up, lost my phone, and got battered. Left stranded and destitute. The aggressors were a bunch of pissed-up Millwall fans. Since I was in the area, I took the decision to knock at my old property, the one that my Ex-partner had inherited during the divorce settlement. I know, but I needed the help.

I had no shoes on my feet. My assailants had taken them, my wallet, and my watch. The Ex opened up with a face mask on, and hugged me as if we were still together, inviting me to put her fella’s Prada slippers on. I did so reluctantly, recalling the toxicity of our ill-fated relationship, wherein she continually cheated on me and pilfered my funds. I used to be a rugby player, but she lost all interest once I was dropped to the reserves. Her new fella appeared, and insisted on a guided tour. He looked like Flash Harry. Apparently he was the top goal scorer at City, pro footballer. While the Ex was making some vital calls, he showed me my old man cave, where his children were deconstructing my PlayStation 5 as part of a scientific homework experiment. They’d sold all the games, but dismantling machines and putting them back together was top of their current agenda. My gaming chair lay in a bundle of pieces in the corner, replaced by a comfy leatherette two-seater. My framed Jonny Wilkinson Jersey was now out of its mounting and adorning the back of his youngest. The second oldest was injecting my cat with a hypodermic syringe. Hansel was meowing loudly.

“Why the hell are you doing that to him?” I asked.

“He needs it every day, for his diabetes,” the little runt replied.

I didn’t even know Hansel the cat had diabetes. I didn’t even know that cats could get diabetes.

The mother-in-law was having a Jacuzzi, newly-built, with ample seating space and simple to use controls. It reeked of eucalyptus. She chewed my ears off for five minutes about her grandkids property portfolios. She offered me some chocolate. I took a bite and spat it out. It was only then that the new fella warned me about it, saying that it contained psilocybin, the active ingredient in magic mushrooms. She gets it ordered off the internet, apparently. I started seeing pink elephants instantly.

“Don’t be a wuss about it,” he said.

He shows me to the acquisition he is most giddy about then, the roof top terrace. It’s here where he grows all his weed, there’s not a regular pine plant in sight.

I turned my nose up at the drugs.

“What are you doing here, wearing my slippers and all that?” he asks. “You can get f**ked for sticking your nose back in!”

It was then that he pushed me off the terrace. I went arse over elbow across the balcony and landed in the swimming pool, again newly-converted. Being unable to swim, I relied on my Ex to help me out. She wrapped one of my old towels around me and said, “I think it’s time you left.”

         Zombie Publications 2025
 

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