aquamarine bead curtains
parting in this pressure zone
and basing nightly preferences
on the girl with the fewest split ends.

lines on the wall intersected,
harsh and rebellious at paint’s fine touch
like possums in the midday sun
when book bags snap aloud.

every bottle cap tossed aside
and tucked in the folds of lifetime shame
reminds me of all that I’d been told
after ribbons were cut, lemonade poured.

I never wanted to choose belief
over a quiet fall into pools of blood
stilled beneath these bony cheeks
grazing linens wrinkled in need of thread.

—

Adventurer of historic neighborhoods, Kristine Brown is a freelance writer and editor who resides in Southwest Texas. Her writing largely draws upon childhood experiences and her interactions with people on public transportation. Her work has been featured in Dulcet Quarterly, In-Flight Literary Magazine, Forage Poetry, Thought Catalog, Journal of Asian Politics and History, Sanglap: Journal of Literary and Cultural Inquiry, among others.On January 27th, Kristine’s first collection of poems and short stories, Scraped Knees, was released by Ugly Sapling. She regularly blogs at https://crumpledpapercranes.com and busies herself making coasters and mixed media art.