Jason Fraley
​

Pickup Line Gone Awry

your coffee spill & tobacco tarmac smile / let me taste how you live //

my dentist scrapes polka dots onto incisors / her x-rays uncover darkness abloom in unexpected
places //

I have not misplaced my gums / those germ reservoirs //

(she whispers) / bleed them dry / (she commands) / my emergent jawbones / ivory economy / her
lip-quivering joy / her leather stool’s pneumatic rapture / my sweet molasses spit //

you can choose whether to sip / on the first date //

plaque is a thief with forethought / (she warns) / my arteries / my liver / it coagulates in quiet
corners //

now is not the time for science //

I swallow bottles of mouthwash weekly in paranoia / it’s not paranoia / (she assures) / a pinky
vivisection / let light inside / find the pale recalcitrant halos / (she threatens) / or prove I’m a
collection of good ones / in need of polish //

I was saving that line for you //
​
(for you)

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Jason Fraley is a native West Virginian who lives and works in Columbus, OH. Prior publications include Quarter After Eight, DIAGRAM, Caketrain, Copper Nickel, and Forklift OH.