Vivisection

Here I lie-
Spread-eagle on the lab table.
Naked, embarrassed, and afraid.
A gaggle of my classmates surrounding me,
like so many gawkers.
Their safety goggles reflect the cruel fluorescent lights.

The first cut doesn’t hurt as much as I expected.
A small incision above my navel.
Almost painless.
Almost.
Then my peers proceed to elongate the slice.
Deepening it, widening it.
They don’t notice my sudden intake of air.
Or the tears welling up in my eyes.
All they know is that they’re having fun.

The next incisions proceed as the first.
Starting small, then growing into festering wounds.
The precise scalpels cut through my sinew, my flesh,
And my blood vessels.
Soon they begin to touch my bleeding skin,
unaware of the pain caused.
Their gleeful eyes look down on me with curiosity.

Now I am completely stripped.
My body is on display for all to see.
The children molest my organs, their hands invading my
Body.
They can see my heart,
yet they don’t notice how rapidly it’s beating.

This cruel act will continue.
My classmates will continue to pick apart my
Body.
As they dig deeper, they will find my soul.
Buried in a secret place, longing to stay hidden.
But they won’t care.
They will continue with the dissection, and
all that will be left is an empty shell.