Something heavy Settles on my bed The blanket sinks I tilt my head Two blank eyes Glazed and dead No color, no hue Sour white instead. A voice of gravel Skin made of boils Yellowed teeth snap Cloth caked with soil Hair made of strings Wet with putrid oil Fingers are gnarled, Tense and coiled. An ice-cold grip ‘Round my stiff limbs My demon screeches My demon grins I try to move Long nails like pins Sleep, he demands, Confess your sins. I want to scream The temperature drops Bones freeze, limbs lock Sleep waits, sleep knocks My demon is winning Screams from the rooftop Until, at last, The chill finally stops.