Suffocate

I felt the heat from the flannel pillow below as I came to.
The sweat gathering on my neck sent
a shrill chill crawling down the rest of my body.
My eyelids part in a squint
for fear of what I might see.
The shadows still swirling on the slanted ceiling
jostle me back into my slumber.

I have full vision now - I watch as
they scrape away from the stucco.
With free reign on uncanny repose,
faceless figures silently claw their way down to the center,
grasping at something much too delicate.

I close my eyes and whip my neck back.
My head pitches from side to side trying to escape
the lucid departure.
Finally, my eyes spring open,
and the ceiling is bare--