an unrehearsed universe

Lick It and Like It

Some days, he wished
she tasted of her first self
before the reinvention
a heady sweaty mead

or even her former self
sweetmeats slow-basted
proteins breaking down
from the edges.

Strawberries -
fucking strawberries
a more useless fruit he'd
be hard-pressed to find -

recall summers
in the countryside
Uncle Stuart’s wandering mind
Aunt Janice’s wandering hands.

The damned dental dam
warming lubricants
a hindrance to the risk
he's willing to take

supplant the tacky earthiness
of a bitch in heat
with the cold chemical stink
of "natural flavors."

But safety first;
there are contingency plans
to memorize and a new field
of conquest

to suit up for.