"I don't know why she would complain;
everyone knows that bigger boobs and smaller waists
are essential elements
in the development
of attractive personalities."

Mary reaches for her cigar.

"Its all dissonance, like the gems
from R. McGedden's Jewellery box set.
Parentheticals in reverse
playing their options--or so she says
to us, she says."

William secretly covets the Xi3 Limited Edition
Diamond engraved Mayan Design Finish
Double Guillotine Cutter® as she pulls it elegantly
from its stingray sheath.

"Well, I thought it was diffidence
on her part, the prosthetic lobe - you know?
It was obviously in the way, in the way
she was afraid to unravel. That would explain
the quivering, the hopeless
fringe, the dangling hands."

Victoria looks the other way, though appearances
can be deceptive.

"Everything she knows
of love unravels. Big deal.
As if their silence must be heard...
I really think she (thinks
he) talks too much."

Albert shakes his can and wonders why it rattles.

"Well, he does twizzle, so it's not surprising
she bristles, but in no sense does that excuse
her Agony Aunt antics. Were you shocked
to learn that she's a Virgo?"

Safia sits in the laundry room, studying
her notes and whistling heavy-metal anthems.

"Certain people are entitled
to their bristles. Why fight it?
I've got a pocket full of shells.
I was born without a face.
It's the year of the boomerang,
but I got no property."

Abdul climbed onto his motor bike, her lips
stashed in his pocket.

"If you don't got collateral, the damage
is done. They'll get back to you,
provided you keep dancing. I once had a place
in history, but it was written off by Romantics."

Paula shaves her profit margins, fearing
confrontation with The Beast
of Bacchanalia.

"There are issues with these proclamations;
the syntax is all over the palace, and no-one knows
how to conjugate the royal 'we'.
If you have insights, there is no cure."

Eliza is busy multitasking, her hands full
of ideas.

"That's the Eliot in the room. There's no hope
without fire, and statistics suggest our days
are numbered. Have you heard the one about
the cat with nine eyes?"

Ivan moves his queen to tears before
the knight is through.

02/04/2021

Author's Note:
A prematurely curtailed collaboration with Jim Benz.
I can't begin to imagine how it ends,
but it has to be put to bed
before it starts pining for its absent co-creator

Posted on 02/04/2021
Copyright © 2024 Laura Doom