Not Today

I

hmm…

hmmmm…

hm…

hmmmm…

hm…

nose pressed flat against the pillow, tense shoulders, tangled hair

head slowly turns

hm…mmmm…

lashes sticky, eyelids flutter

mhmm…

a

a

h

head turns once more, body moves closer to the wall, eyes shut tight

II

“I CAN SEE YOU!”

Yells travel across the yard.

“I’ll tell your mothers!”

No backs turn.

III

Mashed potatoes, nothing else. Water, no milk. And soda, of course. Radio plays.

So close, no matter how far, / Couldn’t be much more…

“Mrs. Anderson called.”

Never cared for what they do / Never cared for what they know / But…

“MRS. ANDERSON CALLED.”

Shoulders shrug.

Softly now: “You’ll put it back.”

Pout.

All these words I don’t just say…

Hands move.

“You WILL put it back.”

Eyes meet.

“Not today.”

And nothing else matters…