The circles in life bring glimpses of sunshine followed by years of confusion. I seek the confusion not only because it reminds me of the sunshine, but because without it, none of my fantasies would ever come to fruition. As a result, agitation is my favourite state. It leads to altered ways of being where there would otherwise be the comatose dreams of others. The circles are resolute. They shine in the halos of streetlights. They flutter outside my window as the stores from my youth do their best to remind me that while this at times feels like a lost cause, the shadows I chase exist in drunken kisses. And so I walk. Aimlessly yet with intent as speeding cars move in slow-motion. The pavement echoes with footsteps already walked. The aromas in the air, wet and rich with memory, dance on the tip of my nose as the rain worms its way up my nostrils causing me to spit and sneeze. And as the mausoleum in the distance beckons me like a bony finger, and the wine on my tongue makes me grin from ear to ear, I rise like a kite into the growling clouds above.

X and I: A Novel and A Journal for Damned Lovers on Amazon UK

X and I: A Novel and A Journal for Damned Lovers on Amazon US