Limerence | Levi Cain
ok now i am beholding u / yes i am bewitched by
the stubby curl of yr ponytail the wide open arc
of shoulders the single black hair poking like an errant
needle from yr chin which u despise & i love
endlessly bc it is u & god do i love the ribbit of yr laugh
when u forget yourself & are too loud in movie theaters,
yr bright teeth flashing like headlight in a churned up storm.
the half-life of an argument is three hours & my forehead
sometimes sweats from the weight of it. the antidote is venting
the poultice is gossip the nostrum my agreeable nod
the antivenom the yes the sure the ok what the fuck.
& sometimes yr reborn by the yes & sometimes yr body
cannot escape the rage & i watch u stand in it,
all of u vibrating like a bumblebee. & my heart pretzels
itself into the familiar waiting. i love the u at midnight
& in the morning when yr swearing at traffic,
kind fists doing drumbeats on the steering wheel.
doesn’t yr mood fill the whole of me with smog
& a slice of dawn & maybe dawn & a slice of fog
who can be sure not my sisters not my best friend not my roommate
not i with my heart pounding at yr quickness to feel
but:
wouldn’t i build a house for yr anger.
wouldn’t i make myself green with shutters
& a porch.
About the Author:
Levi Cain is a non-binary Queeribbean in Boston, MA. Their work has been nominated for the Pushcart Prize and Best of the Net, and has appeared in The Slowdown, Shenandoah Literary Magazine, Room Magazine, and elsewhere. Find them at levicain.wordpress.com.