Underneath my bed

Illustrated by Mara Wiedner

Underneath my bed is where I keep my most treasured possession. Next to boxes of old notebooks with ideas and long-forgotten doodles, sits a locked box containing one gold coin from circa 645 AD. Discovered while digging in the garden as a child, the coin has always been with me. But I don’t keep it sealed for its value. I keep it locked because it never stops screaming. I’ve tried to toss it. But it always finds its way back inside my pocket. So, I keep it in the box which simply muffles it. Dulls it to an untamed whisper.