The woman in blue flicks the end of the needle, and says “You’re probably not going to even feel it.”

I shut my eyes and breathe.

I squeeze my fist.

I feel it.

“Oops,” she says.

I don’t open my eyes.

It’s not real if you don’t open your eyes.

Ron Fromstein is a largely self-taught writer from Toronto who has also lived in Chicago, New Orleans, Vancouver, and Iceland.