A Man who is always thirsty

The man had fallen in my dreams. Narrow. Hollow. Unsure of the time. The place. The reason that the man lied on the ground. He picked himself up. Slowly. Staggering a bit, as he placed the weight on both his feet.

I asked if he needed help.

The man started brushing himself off without a reply. The ground was dusty. Dirty. His clothes had collected some debris. Scattered all around on the floor.

I can't remember why the ground was so dirty. But it was.

It took the man a while to brush his clothes off. Clean. His hands became dirty, and he would brush the dust back on his clothes. Back on to his hands. Back on to his pants. His jacket. It was obvious to everyone but him. Just what he was doing, to make himself dirty again.

I asked him if he was thirsty. The air was arid and dry. Thick. I suddenly realized, how hot it was.

The man turned to me. Smiled. Gave me a nod.

So I got him a glass of water. I don't know where I got the glass. The water. But it was there, in my hand. I reached out, extending my arm, the man, reached out, and took the glass from me.

The man drank. Endlessly. There just seemed so much water. Water would empty from the glass. Then, the glass would replenish itself. Over and over, I saw the man gulping down, mouthful after mouthful. Then, do it again. Again.

I looked at my glass. It was still half full. I parted my mouth. Ran my tongue across my lips. They felt wet. My throat felt moist. But I was still so thirsty.

I turned my head around the room. To see what I could find. There was a picture of a mouse dressed in an elven suit. Green and cherry. The mouse had a smile on his face. And the was a warmth in his eyes.

I turned back around. To look at the man. By then, the man had put the glass down. He was finally all done.

My glass was empty now too. So I put it on the ground.

As I raised my body back up, I felt the room start to move.

I looked at the man. He seemed not to care. The room was not spinning fast. But fast enough for me to notice. I wasn't getting dizzy. Just a bit confused. The man started brushing himself off again. Slapping his hands on his pants. The dust would collect into little clouds. Then disperse, as the man slapped his hands back down. Puff. Puff. I heard the sounds go. Puff. Puff, The clouds would burst into air.

I looked around for something that might help. A broom. A cloth. Something other than his hands. His hands kept getting dirty, and the man would have to start all over again.

I saw a broom. Leaning on the wall. I walked over to get it. The room was still moving. A little faster now. I wasn't getting dizzy. Though I felt a little thin. I just kept on walking, until I had the broom safe in my hands.

I returned to the man. Who had changed positions while I was gone. He was facing south. Now, he was facing east. I saw the sun coming in from a window. The sun was hot and warm.

I showed the man the broom. He let out a chuckle. Shook his head, and returned to the task at hand.

He did not want the broom. So I just laid it next to him. Next to his foot, on the ground.

The day went on and on. On into the night. I kept finding things for the man to use. The man stayed silent along. He never said a word. Though I would talk to him. The man never seemed to notice. And just let me talk and talk.

I found myself tire of this. Wanting him to talk. So I left the room. Opened a door and walked out. I didn't hear the man call to me. Ask me where I was going.

Outside, I walked and walked. It was night now. The stars were full in the sky. The moon was crescent, and the streets felt solid. Concrete under my feet. Not like the room that kept turning. With the man who was never clean.

I kept on walking on through the night. I saw the sun slowly rising. And knew I needed to return.

I opened the door again. Walked back into the room.

Inside the doorway, I saw the man falling. Down he went again. Back down to the ground. On to a floor that was always dirty. In a room that was never clean. I knew I would always be thirsty here. So I woke up from this dream.