Depths Read Free Page B

be
because of the lack of sleep. I've noticed a steady decline in my
weight and I'm not a heavy set person by any means. I stand about
five-foot ten, maybe five eleven if I'm not slouching, and the most
I've ever weighed my whole life was maybe one fifty. I think I'm
down to one twenty-five now.
    Miracle diet. Just don't sleep for months and shed
all that unwanted fat. I bet I could publish a no-sleep diet and
make a nice chunk of money. I walked slowly to the bathroom sink.
The chilly water was invigorating as I splashed it on my face. I
looked into the mirror, barely recognizing myself. Dark bags framed
my once bright icy-blue eyes. They were much duller now. My
reflection sapped my own energy from me as I looked into the Mirror
Me's eyes. Stubble covered my sunken in cheeks, cheek bones that
were already very pronounced, now seemed to jut out like ledges
under my eyes. What a mess.
    I opened my eyes, the room was dark and I could
barely see anything. I put my legs over the edge of the bed,
planted my feet on the ground and stood. With my arms outstretched
in front of me, I felt my way to the bathroom door and missed. The
door was open and I never left my door open. I barely caught myself
on the counter and avoided a face plant. The light switch, where
was it? My arm searched along the wall until I felt the smooth
plastic from the wall plate and I flicked the switch on.
    Click.
    The light was blinding. I squinted to shut it out
and when my eyes finally adjusted, my retinas were stained. Colored
spots danced all over the walls. I caught a glimpse of myself in
the mirror and noticed something was... Off. I brushed the hair
away from my eyes and peered into the mirror, not quite sure about
what wasn't right.
    My right eye. My right eye was brown. A deep brown.
Not my normal blue.
    “ What the hell …”
    I stepped closer to the mirror to get a better look.
I rubbed my eyes, maybe I still had sleep gunk in them and it was
blurring my vision. Or maybe my retinas were still stained?
    Nope. The spots had disappeared and I could see just
fine. I inched even closer to the mirror and held my eye open,
staring slack jawed with disbelief.
    Clink .
    What was that? The noise made me
jump. Drops of blood began falling into the sink and I tasted
copper. I grabbed my mouth and saw my front incisor tooth caught
between the opening of the drain. Without thinking, my shaking hand
reached for the tooth and pinched it between my thumb and index
finger. I didn ’ t want to see it, but my
elbow bent, pulling the tooth to my face, daring me to examine it.
My tooth . Root
and all, with chunks of meat still clinging on, traces of plaque
flecked over the enamel. I looked back to the mirror, opening my
mouth to look at the vacant space my tooth once occupied.
B lood ooz ed lazily from the socket, mixing with saliva, spreading the
metallic taste over more tastebuds. Disgusted, I spat the blood
into the sink. As the blood was leaving my mouth, I could feel a
solid, smooth, stone-like object pass through my lips.
    Another tooth, a molar this time.
    Panicked, I let out a scream and looked around for
something, anything to help me. Unfortunately, I caught a glimpse
of my reflection and noticed that my left eye had changed colors to
match the right eye's chocolate brown.
    Pressure was building in my sinuses and I watched my
long, thin nose transform, curving and hooking down and bulging
outwards. I grabbed desperately trying and stop the mutation,
smearing blood from my mouth all over my face in the process.
    My head felt like it would burst
through the front of my face. Bones cracked and popped, stretching
and snapping grotesquely into new, distorted positions. My
cheekbones grew outwards, my forehead broadened, my skull split and
I could see the individual outlines of skull plates, pushing the
limits of my skin ’ s elasticity. I grabbed
my head, trying futilely to push my features back into place.
Another tooth clinked onto the tile floor, I wasn't