The Origins of Waiting
Erin McIntosh

 
 blue knuckle glass on
a sunscreened porch
and two pretty ladies
perched out of doors
at a picnic table off
hyperion. the third one
filled with a storm
brewing inside like
so much black coffee.
she said let's make
something out of this.
a vacation week, sun-
kissed and drunk in
back alleys off apple
vodka and lager.
laughing before you
leave to return home
for telenovela reruns,
crying a little because
where has it all gone?
all of your life up until
today has vanished –
and if none of this
matters, what does?
not the grapefruit and
champagne, not the
four hundred dollar
sunglasses he gave
her for nothing, not
the love you missed
out on or any of the
things you almost did
differently. goodbye to
nighttime rituals, skipping
shifts, gatherings in
neighborhood houses
in highland park.
overnight, autumn.

 
 
 
 


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About the Author: Erin McIntosh is a writer and actress currently living in Los Angeles. Her writing has appeared and is forthcoming in various journals including Two Serious Ladies, Noble / Gas Qtrly, Bone Bouquet, Lavender Review, Cleaver Magazine, Pine Hills Review, Hawai’i Review and Vending Machine Press. Visit her here.
GRAVEL