Tumbleweeds

"Ooooh, those tumbling tumbleweeds..."
I sang it out loud
Trying to remember the words
Not worried about being proud

Why bother after all
There aren't people for hundreds of miles
Scrub desert all I could see
Sand, rocks, cactus
And tumbleweeds

They blew all around in the evening's stiff breeze
Rolling about with the greatest of ease
It was relaxing to watch
I lost track of time
So hypnotized by the tumbling tumbleweeds

Soon the sun disappeared
Behind a distant mountain ridge
Throwing another log on the fire
I straightened my sleeping bag
Stretched out on the softest sandiest area I could find
Right next to my motorcycle

Some rustling and bustling caught my ears and eyes
Looking around I saw it was only some tumbleweeds
Having gotten caught up in a nearby scrub bush
Being pushed and pulled by the breeze
Trying to make their way back out into the open desert

I paid them no mind

Stretched out next to my bike
Soft sand under the sleeping bag conforming to my shape
Warm fire burning low a few feet away
Keeping the chill of the evening at bay

The stars stared down at me
I stared up the stars
My eyelids drooped
Again and again
I struggled to stay awake
Just for a few more minutes
Taking in all the beauty of the night

Some more rusting and bustling from the tumbleweeds
Sounding a little closer this time
But I didn't care
Nothing to worry about from some tumbleweeds
Silly things

My eyes closed
Sleep enveloped me

A crash of thunder and pain awoke me
It felt like a hundred little spikes were being drilled into my head
Lighting flashed
I saw a tangled mess of dry twigs before my eyes
All of it moving like no twigs should
Almost like living appendages

I screamed
The tumbleweed was doing something to me
Struggling to pull my arms free
Finding myself restrained by a dozen more tumbleweeds
I heard a cracking sound

That wasn't thunder
I numbly thought to myself
A cold draft chilled the inside of my head
My eyes closed
I fell into nothing