Wither

1

I WAIT. They keep us in the dark for so long that we lose sense of our eyelids. We sleep huddled together like rays,  staring out, and dream of our bodies swaying.
   I know when one of the girls reaches a wall. She begins to pound and scream-there's metal in the sound-but none of us help her. We've gone too long without speaking , and all we do is bury ourselves more into the dark.
  The doors open.
   The light is frightening. Its the light of the world through the birth canal, and at once the blinding tunnel that comes  with death. I recoil into the blankets with the other girls in horror, not wanting to begin the end.
   We stumble when they let us out; we've forgotten how to use our legs. How long has it been-days?Hours?
The big open sky waits in its usual place.
   I stand in line with the other girls, and men in gray coats study us. Ive heard of this happening. Where i come from, girls have been disappearing for a long time. They disappear from their beds or from the side of the road. It happened to a girl in my neighborhood. Her whole family disappeared after that, moved away, either to find her or because they knew she would never be returned.
     Now its my turn. I know girls disappear, but any number of things could come after that. Will i become a murdered reject? Sold into prostitution? These things have happened.