the skin on the back of my neck tingled as i stared into the fire.

james sat in a chair snoring with his mouth wide open.

i peeled a banana and opened my book.

the dim light of the evening was all but gone and only the burning fire provided me with light.

i was reading a book by goethe and the sentences seemed to blur together.

"i only wished i had never known her."

"the clock on the mantle said midnight."

an extreme wave of boredom was settling over me so i slapped myself in the face.



i opened my phone and played poker for half an hour.

the wind outside was whipping the tree branches against our loft.

in the room down the hall i could hear my other roommate mark having sex with his girlfriend.

i tried to concentrate on my book, so that it would not seem obvious that their intercourse was audible.

a half-eaten corn cob sat on the table next to me.

i picked it up and examined it.

i stared at it for several minutes.

it showed no sign of life.