[afternoon sun leaking through]

afternoon sun leaking through my eyelids
despite your carelessly drawn shades
i lean into the towel rack
clutching you

you, in the double twisted cotton
clinging to the towel rack
made in america
every snag and tear

tear me into pieces, smiling
like a cheshire cat, so smug-
wavering attachment to a face
so vague

vague in indication, in involvement
in anything resembling conversation
one word answers to billion word questions
what didn't you hear

hear me screaming over
white noise into a receiver lacking
your james dean voice
ringing in the empty dark

dark with frustration, nails
digging at buried veins
i lean against the bathroom wall
clutching this piece of you