She smiled nails
bare and bulging
from the molding,

when I was
building, flailing
my arms into

question-dark
spaces seeking
my tools, I caught

my skin on her
rust-lip tips, ripped
myself from elbow to

wrist, and screamed
myself to tear
her from the wall. 

Fog-eyed, the words blend:

"perm" and "poem" confuse, fuse,

neither survive heat.

I bit your index finger,
drawing blood from my bottom
sharp-tooth, and drew circles
around my elbow with the bleeding.

Target-drawn, I left you
punctured, found ceramic tiles,
sharpened my arm-bone in the shards.

Bent and prepared I hold it,
now, embraces like weapons.

"they became bloodthirst, everything"
mouths stained and rumors
houses, naked and simple,
call for wall-fill and paint,
furniture sitting silly-spent,


the men out killing, cleaning
blood from bone, regret bills,
formal dishes, formal-meat.

Her white-dyed fur muff
armored her right arm, rabbit,
first, it was a cast.
I gained ground, took drinks,
counting pearls against corners.
I asked to pet it.

Academy, hair-prices,
service, styling, web-bundles
haunt paraffin clusters,
smooth, silk, feet-lushed
toner: shampooed like gel scalps

wedding, her mesh-veil
slashes across her forehead,
eyes polished: French masque

two women, salon, push
pinched pitches for Polite,
screeching manners, tone-tall
as hair-tall; these secrets,
these battles, fought behind,
painted, eyes like open hands
they take turns following,
chemicals cover it in blonde

cattail tips ash, fall

flaking into hush-ripples;

worn jeans, dusted cuffs

Your oak-paneled smile,
the cotton on your breath,
the milk-trails you left
dancing in the kitchen,

I weave them into gins,
drunk-sinking myself into puddles
I collected pieces of you near.

you say, "you don't know":
bite-nails or poison lilies,
but, "you understand"

wall-blocks, brick-corners,
concrete teeth gnashing gravel
meals night-wet with steam

crows' heads fever-cock
scourging for prey; your ankle
thin against my grip

embers, my kisses
scald your palms; your bandaged hands
ashing from my jaw