.: LWOT: THE WORLD'S GREATEST FICTION MAGAZINE :.

LWOT : The World s Greatest Fiction Magazine

Kathryn Mockler has an MFA from the University of British Columbia and BA in Honours English and Creative Writing from Concordia University. Her writing has appeared in The Danforth Review, Descant, Pottersfield Portfolio, PRISMinternational, Room of One's Own, Stand Magazine, Utne Reader, and The Fiddlehead. She has poems forthcoming in The Antigonish Review, Poetry Salzburg Review, Misunderstandings Magazine, and Carousel. Kathryn teaches at the University of Western Ontario and the Ontario College of Art and Design.

Sealed Containers

-So how are we going to get out of here?

-Why do you repeat my questions?

-I don't repeat your questions.

-You repeated my question about getting out of here.

-We need a plan.

-I can't think of anything.

-Let's think of three ways to get out of here and pick the best one.

-Okay? Let's do it. Let's find three ways to get out of here.

-Okay. You go first.

-You go first.

-Are you back to repeating?

-I thought you should think of an idea first.

-My idea was you go first, and then you repeated what I said.

-Let's try to yell.

-Yell? Why not pick something we could use?

-Yelling is an idea we could use.

-We tried it before; it didn't work.

-Maybe it will work if we try again?

-Okay.

-So idea number one is yelling. Do you have a suggestion for idea number two?

-No.

-You answered too quickly.

-I answered quickly because there are no ideas.

-How about banging on the side? Maybe someone will hear us if we bang on the side.

-If they didn't hear us yell, why would they hear us bang? It doesn't make any sense.

-Number one is yelling and number two is banging on the side. Do you have any suggestions for idea number three?

-Yes.

-Yes?

-I said yes. You don't need to repeat it.

-What's your suggestion?

-We sit here. We do nothing.

-That means we'll die. You're giving up? You're not trying.

-There's nothing to try.

-We just…need a plan.

-We don't have a choice.

-Of course we do.

-Don't you know what's going to happen?

-The man shakes his head.

-I don't want to think about it.

-In an attempt to survive we will eat our own feces and drink our own urine.

-Please.

-Next we will claw at each other's eyes and bite at each other's flesh. There will be blood. We will no longer be able to see.

-Please. Stop.

-You will be yelling and banging on the side. No one will hear. I will sit and wait. We will pass out before we take our final breath. Our decaying bodies will fill the room with a stench that neither of us will smell.

-Will maggots form?

-I don't know. Probably.

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