fulgurite

poems by Isabella Zellerbach

would you        die for me        he asks when there is             nothing
between us but skin & sweat as we                  exhale               

chest to chest              too hot             too tired           to do much                  more than lie there
wine & resentment                   spilled on sand                         separating us  

i laugh              not even          if you promise              to stay
he traces my bottom lip with two          fingers  

& i feel             the fading indents        where i bit down           while he was inside me
he remembered his wife                       cursed his friends         for inciting  

this union         so i refill his cup                       & promise        peace  if he lies          
with me awhile             longer

•

pothos

lover may i       wait for you      comfort you      hold you close
when you call me & tell me you fucked her

may i                hate you          love you           pray you come back
when you show me rings you plan to give her 

lover have i      listened to you shown you anger         given silence
when she rips you in two as you thank her

 have i               danced with you           cried with you               tasted you
in those half-guilty minutes before we splinter

 lover will you
comfort me      pray for me      listen to me

 will you             forget me

 please                                      release me

 when i pull the threads weaving our                 history & allow them to

                                                                                                                                             unravel

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Isabella is a writer with a focus on the culture/superstition of a Mexican household and how that relates to sexuality, gender dynamics, and grief/trauma. She is a graduate from Johns Hopkins University with degrees in Writing Seminars and Political Science. She is a Flash Fiction Reader and Assistant Creative Non-Fiction Editor at Homology Lit. Her work has appeared in Anti-Heroin Chic and Honey & Lime. You can find her at @izellerbach on twitter or https://izellerbach.wordpress.com/.