Insex

A Creepy Tale by Courteney Dark

The first cockroach appeared on Monday, on my kitchen floor. By Wednesday, they had infiltrated the entire apartment. I would discover one establishing communications in the shadow of a dinner plate or setting up an observation post behind a glass. Soon they marched triumphantly across the countertop and over dishes in the sink.

They are American cockroaches. I recognize the combat gear. The antennae on their helmets relay information back to headquarters about conditions in the field and receive orders to advance or hold. I heard one of their overlords beating the sky outside my rooms.
They’re beautiful. I love their shiny thoughts, the way they hiss seductively. Thursday I turned on the floor lamp made of rice paper stretched on a wire frame. The size and shape of a woman’s head and body, it’s all undulating curves with lights inside. Several silhouetted shapes appeared inside her, repositioning themselves like signal flags. They are attempting to communicate with me.

I lay naked on the bed after I exercised and breathed as calmly as I could. Two creatures ventured onto me and drank my sweat. They know I’m friendly now. They know I’m good to eat.

More crawled on me the next night and following morning. I replaced the white lights in the lamp with red. It seems to soothe them. Many more have moved inside.

They like my perspiration so I exercise as often as I can and spread the sweat all over me. I have responsibilities.

They line my apartment walls and ceiling. They ripple the floor. The television is obscured as they consume the news. I cannot walk or sit without crushing my friends. It is time to leave.

Clothed in insect majesty, directed by a higher need, I head into a shining world, hissing for my queen.

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Courteney Dark is a never (before) published author suffering a mid-life crisis.