The sky is absent of ____
until the fog burns off around midday –
a deeper ____ invited to each clear night nestled with stars
My walls are stained with it
(bathroom ____ bleeds to kitchen ____)
I’m cloaked in soft ____
Dry my hands on ____,
wear it thin on my chest and thighs
(____ can chafe in the name of appearances –
I peel it off and slip into a cozier ____ at day’s end)
____ never leaves my eyes
even when flecked with sunlight
at a fierce angle, even when
clouded over, a disappointment
seeping out from somewhere
I leak ____.
I smell of it.
____ in the ring he gave me
____ in the ring I still wear
____ ringing in my ears, lingering
on my lips, an anthem echoing
a deep cut
____ when alone
In a wrong crowd: more ____ still
In his company: Is there a word beyond ____?
(2020)
