Small Places : Nick L Belardes [77 of 128]

• A ladybug has a muddy shell and twitching wing. She whimpers while water rushes into the sewer.
• A moth loses its grip, falls into the water. The bugs don't talk to each other.
• Other than water, the only sounds are Milt hacking at snails. I hear screams, shells crunched, a cackle.
• I move closer to the huddled snails. They smoke cigarettes. "Why are you here?" I ask. One of the snails turns around. It's Joan.
• Her crushed shell looks painful, like a broken Easter egg. "I once lived in a beautiful garden. I avoided poison, birds, curious children.
• "Then the gardener found me and stepped on me. He thought I was dead and left me on the sidewalk to wither. I came here."
• A snail missing an eye looks at me. "It's the only place left for us. We hang on as long as we can. When we fall, we go to another place."
• I look down at the swirling water. A roly-poly spins on its back like a boat caught in a whirlpool. It yelps for help then is gone.
• I slither my way back out of the sewer and head for an imaginary garden that only my dreams can muster. A dandelion bends to me and smiles.