there's often tension when a pride gets too big.

.



finals week.
makes me rethink some things.


today when i went someplace to finish finish my pack of cigarettes and
two calculus assignments,
i stayed still, working in the seat across michelle's,
conscious of every move this boy made.
this kid that i've half liked since middle school.
his laugh is so hollow and his gait sways
as if he wants to believe that he's strong.
his words are harsh like mine,
and he choked on his noodles when i talked about getting laid.

today i stared at myself in the mirror after taking a long, hot shower,
wiped the fog from the mirror and looked,
applied lotion and realized that my legs are sausages
and that there was a bruise on my hip
that looks like a square.





.