Thank you for trying again
when I dodged your kiss
not on purpose, but because it was new
and I couldn’t process
how something so sweet could be
meant for me.
For years, I followed hands
that wound me up in maybes
that had me thinking
I would never find
a match in time
for a life. I learned
lessons second-hand
leasing shoulders for tears, zipped
lips for other’s smiles, wide
inviting. Breaking
with friends, that pain
a surrogate for a different
love.
Then you.
We met each other
shy over schooners
condensation sloping the glass
over knuckles, over fingers
trailing down my hand
your eyes on me
your skin against my cheek
as I misread the signs
listening to that voice
for the last time
that ticked the hands over
that whispered wretched
things. It stopped the moment
I realised I no longer believed
alone was all I’d ever be.
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.
Artist: Elly-Grace Rinaldis is a model and creative writer located in Brisbane. When she is not backpacking or travelling internationally, Elly-Grace enjoys socialising over a bottle of pinot noir with her friends, family and beloved cat Vera. Elly-Grace is currently studying to complete her Bachelor of Fine Arts majoring in Creative Writing at QUT. Her debut poetry collection titled Five Summers: An Anthology is currently available for purchase on her website www.ellygrace.com.au or locally at Avid Reader in West End. She can be found at @ellygracewrites