girl says boy, i like to talk
from here, tapping convincing-
ly with four fingers at some
approximation of her heart's
location, lying deceptively
beneath a cheeky t-shirt
with the rubric "bitch"
written on it above a
cartoon of a stick figure
man pointing a gun as
matter of factly as stick
figure men can at stick
figure women. he gets up to
go to the bathroom as she
calls plaintively, "i hope you
come back to me" with
melody backed by practiced
experience. hope
expressed is assurance
received. in his absence a
tiny bucket of dangerously
ascorbic candied spirits appears
with a metal handle
and two plastic straws.
ominous caps of ice peak
through the meniscus mad
lab vapour wafting from the
surface
will and desire: will you
go with me? i don't believe
you. i will go with you? yeah.
prompt and response
each attempt to convince
of false sincerity.
they march to an atm. as some
conspicuous proof she leaves her
pocketbook on the table
Bangkok, 2007
