Mid-morning on a weekday
your fingertips return my kiss
on glass, beyond where water trembles
over slopes and valleys, adored breaths before.
You bend to reach my skin, dry now
covered in cream and navy—loose
layered—curled for comfort
into palms. Yours stamp upon the sliding door
sparkling handprints at heart height
on the other side, you encourage green—
deep breaths on a jungle balcony—
my toes trace infinity inside, etching esses
on the soft square that ices vanilla tiles
in our living room. Your humming
vibrates the walls, the oxygen.
Dusted keys in the lowest draw,
abandoned to the mandate—
our bodies confined to this.
Author: Nicole Jacobsen is a Brisbane artist, writer, poet, and aspiring editor who regularly finds herself re-befuddled by the difference between who and whom. Her background in Psychology emerges through character studies, obsessive bouts of self-reflection, and recurrent themes of mental health in her work. You can find her on Instagram @by.nicoleaj
Artist: Sarah McLachlan is a third year Bachelor of Creative Writing student who likes to draw in her spare time. She wishes to combine both her art and writing skills to create a webcomic of her own one day, but she’s also open to illustrating for books and book covers. Sarah is also a major The Legend of Zelda fan and can be found drawing a lot of elves. You can find her at @hideriame02 on Instagram.
Editors: Hannah Vesey and Willow Ward