Speed Dating at a Used Bookstore
Bradley Samore


 
The bell jingles as I open the door
and I glance the scene not a virgin in sight
unlike the Barnes where Nobles go
the prospects here will settle for less

I strut the rows to see who’s here
on a Tuesday evening looking for love
and I recognize one and pull her aside
to study more fully her curveless frame

the cover’s nice but you know what they say
so I turn her around and read her tattoos
the ones on her back that lure me inside
to flip through her sheets and explore for awhile

the date’s going well but a question remains
I pull her in closer with both of my hands
and inhale a life of forty years
cigarette smoke unfurling still
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and I know right then that no matter how good
it’s not in her plot to be written in mine 









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About the Author: Bradley Samore currently lives in North Carolina and is a high school English teacher. His writing has been featured in various publications including West Texas Literary Review, Foliate Oak Literary Magazine, and SLAB Literary Magazine.
GRAVEL