I try to stay awake

but I’m exhausted and can’t escape 

the steel hands of sleep.

I find myself in a labyrinth

and he’s waiting around every corner,

that laugh echoing all around me.

I try to run but my legs are heavy

and I don’t want to turn around

because I know he’s there—

can feel hot breath on my neck,

an icy blade on my skin.

I try to scream but the sound

sticks in my throat—

no one to hear me anyway,

no one but him and he laughs

at my stitched mouth.

I try to force myself to wake up

but I am a prisoner,

my eyes sealed by the sprinkling

from this fiendish Sandman

and there is no escaping those razors now.

His laugh will be the last thing I hear.

Lisa Lerma Weber loves watching scary movies even though she knows she’ll have nightmares. Her writing and photography have appeared in print and online. Follow her on Twitter @LisaLermaWeber.