i don’t chase, i attract
what belongs to me will simply find me
you did, in that moment
i close my eyes and see your face
your stubbly cheeks and toothy grin
chin tilted down, eyes stuck on mine
your rectangular glasses were crooked on your nose
and it had me giggling into your warm chest as we hummed
the dance was more of a sway but i called it slow dancing
i felt like i was wearing a silk ballgown with kitten heels
and barrettes in my hair
i held on to you like i knew this would only be a moment in time
humming turned to fire crackling and
insects surrounding, and my arms became his and his legs were mine
i don’t know how we fully became one
you whispered frank sinatra into my ears
like one of the crickets by the woods and
then you were mine for the moment and the moment was ours
and i’d like to think you thought that too,
as i stood on my tiptoes to reach your lips
which were now mine
as my chest sunk into yours like quicksand
you still had to bend over meeting me in the middle, while i tried to
inconvenience for you reach your neck with my lips
and meet every inch of your skin
i’m sorry my hands were cold
when i ran my fingers up your back, i just couldn’t help myself
i’m sorry your hat fell into the dirt, i just needed to
comb my fingers through your hair
hold and touch every ounce of you that you made available to me
i’m sorry it was too toothy (i’ll practice for next time)
i could’ve stayed
until the fire had dimmed and the shingles crumbled
and my skin was leathery and we’d tired out the moon
if you’d want that, i mean
Sophie Clarkin is an emerging writer and recent Wheaton College, MA graduate with her BA in Creative Writing & Literature and Film & New Media Studies. She received the Helen Meyers Tate Memorial Prize for Original Verse in May 2023 and her work has appeared in Rushlight, the oldest student-run literary magazine in the country. In her free time, she enjoys reading romance books with a cat in her lap.
Featured image by Natalia Sobolivska.
