At a truckstop diner in Springwood, Ohio
You tell me my pants are too tight,
You do not like the way they pinch the sides of my waist,
And I think about all the lobster rolls we ate on our first date
How you held the same parts of my body
You’ve now deduced, a nightmare
How you cherished every curve like sugar
Sticky sweet dough.
You tell me of a woman
You’ve been seeing on the side
with a callousness that doesn’t fit the lace of your lip,
I sip coffee, focus my tongue on the bitter taste, pretend
I don’t hear you. Not in the way you intend
Not in the way that says, our world is over
You tell me that you love her with an ache that’s taught you,
You never loved me to begin with. There is no sorry in your eyes.
Mine feel they’ve been plucked with knives –
My face a candle, your voice a flame
When I can’t ignore you any longer, my ears ring,
Louder,
Louder,
Louder,
You’re lying in a warm ball beside me.
You’re breathing is calm, eyes closed, acutely unaware
Of how cruel you can be. But,
It was only a dream.