off the bride’s fingernail
a kiss on the mouth
for old times’ sake.
She bit me.
You’re a bad girl, she said,
this is not how we behave at weddings.
The DJ refused to read the room,
so we shouted until the venue kicked us out.
A taxi into town – all fun and singing, my
thigh against his thigh – how was he always
this warm, Ava? Like his body was a battery –
stored the sun.
The only bar still open was Snake Boy’s, they told me.
Remember him? They asked.
That creep! I said, how is he?
He had quite the little empire now – they said –
properties and clubs –
still has a kink for secret films of girls, they laughed.
I asked if they remembered my school friend – if
he had videos of her.
They didn’t know – they said – then one turned
from the front seat – no, he definitely did – he’d seen it –
he remembers, mostly because she was so young,
yeah, he said, felt weird watching that one.
Someone placed a novelty captain’s hat onto my head.
The slightly older guy beside me laughed
the cheekiest laugh,
You look like you could command some seamen,
but then you always did.
I punched him softly in the gut,
I did, Ava, I think I did – I loved him – goodgod
goodlord…
The bar was just the same as it had been
before – a little grubbier perhaps – low ceiling and all the
chairs were wooden pallets – unsanded – laziness or
fashion who can say – I can.
My tights laddered the second I sat down
and I remembered
all the morning-after splinters
from before.
