Parallel stripes of sunlight cut a dim crepuscule of half-forms and soft edges and the still air is shattered by an insistent stentato. Anaemic sheets blanket indistinct bodies stirring with indistinct thoughts, pulled aside to creaking bedsprings and heavy steps upon oak. A sharp jerk and illumination rushes to fill the penumbra left by retreating shadow, painting surfaces blinding white. Blink, and a technicolor world is restored, defined lines and geometries exposed from beneath a haze. Coherent deliberations begin to emerge from quietly muffled consciousness. Further footsteps are trailed by the snap of a latch.
Networks of finely pockmarked epoxy crisscross matte ceramic, punctuated by ingrained mildew. Above, flecks of dark mould trace nameless constellations amidst a peeling eggshell sky. A terse shower falls upon clustered bottles of rosemary and apricot and lavender. The thin trickle slows to a staccato drip.
Wet slaps on linoleum. Threadbare cotton, damp hair and notes of lavender are imbued with faint charges of static. A fog of vapour masking a reflection gazing back is dispersed with the offhand scrawl of a palm; angry red capillaries of fatigue and excess now return the stare, framed by barely discernable wisps of gold and purple hollows. Flush lips contrast pale skin, briefly parting to a flash of enamel and moist pink. Twin pills and an acrid crunch further disperse the fog.