The Jockey And The Mount

Kieran carried me into the bathroom. He got into the tub with me. His shirt and pants were drenched. I leaned against his chest. ‘Have you slept at all in the past week? Your eye bags are big enough to play hide and seek in.’ His chest vibrated as he spoke. He locked both arms around my waist. ‘No.’ I took his right hand. It was so much bigger than mine. His fingers were longer and stronger. Which made me jealous. Why couldn’t I be as strong as him? Speaking of—was the man real? Was I in a dream? Didn’t I take two Ambiens earlier? Were they not working? The surface of the soapy bathwater undulated gently, but maybe it was just an ultra-vivid dream. Since I didn’t have a spinning top like in the movie ‘Inception,’ I had to test if this was a dream in another way. I took his hand and bit down on his fingers. He hissed in pain. I sank my teeth into his flesh. It drew blood. He didn’t make a move and just let me use his hand as a chew toy. I licked a drop of blood. It tasted coppery, like