Emily Lockwood - A Night at the Cottage 6 of 7

The scent. That scent. It was bothersome to breathe. Don't breathe. Don't! But the stranger kept the rag pressed against her face, and the long struggle to avoid breathing, the running away from reflex, repetition, and revitalization, resulted in the inevitable ravenously ruinous inhalation. That acrid scent flooding the nose, soaring through the body on the way to the lungs where the heady overwhelming chemicals got down to work.

It started with the head becoming lighter, willingly offering to float up off the neck and shoulders, lolling back and forth like a helium balloon pulling at a bothersome string holding it down. Her dark eyelashes fluttered shuttering the eyes as focus was testing new settings. Focus was overrated. Out of focus was the new focus. That horrifying black metallic mask stretched and leaned, became misshapen, becoming nothing more than a blob. That's a really strange thing. Is it a jellyfish? Am I... am I... did I... am I in the ocean? Emily's thoughts were adrift.

She felt unrestricted, lost at sea. There was no longer an intense pressure pinning her down. The backs of her hands and the smooth soles of her stocking bearing feet were slipping and sliding on the fire warmed comforter as though she were swimming through a dizzying dream. Her lips parted, jaw sloping slack as the weakest of breath came out in a gentle wheeze.

Her red ponytail scattered unsupervised, while the hem on her blue dress ignored the modest decorum for ladies. Even her pantyhose showed the subtle arrival of tiny pulls in the fabric, something her mother would have scolded her about. "You mustn't rough-house in your pantyhose, Emily if you want to appear presentable. You must mind your tights!" she could hear her chiding her now.

Emily shied away from her mother's motherly tone. She wanted to say that she tried to be careful, but her mouth felt all gummed up. Or was it that she couldn't think of the right words? Why couldn't she think of the right words? It was these blasted chemicals that were clouding up her brain! It's like a green mist in here. I can hardly breathe! So tired... just gotta... just gotta find one of those fabled fresh breaths.

Right... after... a little... nap.