roadkill
and i was a possum
bright eyed and bushy tailed and he couldn’t wait
salivated at the thought of me
being dead in the road
cutting everyone off
throwing my old life away
trading textbooks for starched aprons
and clubbing with my friends for military balls
he couldn’t wait to pick me clean
to put me in places where i didn’t really belong
craved the idea of him being the only one who felt safe
criticized the friends i’ve had for years
and my parents who were just trying to help
put me on planes across the country to see him
but when i showed up he’d be deep in the hotel minibar
picking apart my photos
begging me to block and unfollow and lay in the middle of the road
so he could watch with piercing eyes from the median
and wait for a car to run me over—
but one never did
i broke from his stare
got up
and scampered back into the woods