Sheila Squillante

Bad Dream Fish

Here they come again: bad dream fish (ballooning tank, untended, fetid) swimming murkish schools, recurring circles around, around bottom feeders, catfish, clown loaches, thick as thumbs, slow, bloated, over-toothed. You hide in a hole in the skull’s face (fish-portal, window in), see fingers growing neon- greener, ruffle like the muck around a diver’s bell. You’re calm, unafraid of drowning—a big relief. Snails travel your leafing arms. Your nails too soft for scraping, legs taking root.