and then, atop a mess of
soaked Egyptian cotton
while water trickled from
an overturned bedside vase
as if savoring a cool spring after
a week lost in the Sahara
Remy and Anäis devoured each other
playing each other’s bodies
like musical instruments –
he was the sax, she the violin –
until their harmonics
be… gan… to…
detonate rainbow explosions
raise neighbors’ eyebrows
send parents’ hands onto childrens’ ears
rattle the Royal Doulton and
ripple the orange pekoe at
the church ladies’ party two doors down
and Anäis’ neural circuits blew repeatedly
for several glorious seconds at a time
launching her into
an infinite, timeless void where
she knew neither who
nor where
she was
and in the flat
at the end of the hall
old Mathilde’s lips
smiled a knowing smile
