End of Summer Party
by Christopher Menezes
I left you bound
to a bed, tubes and needle tips,
puncturing your arm, abdomen,
pumping fluid.
I left you for a silver keg, cold
and heavy on the kitchen floor,
beer foaming out its open valve.
It couldn’t be you,
releasing the pressure
that filled my cup.
A thirsty line formed behind me.
I fumbled with the spout.
Ryan asked, how’s Jenn?
The apartment laughed,
complained about work, bad tips.
I left you for these
conversations, spiraling
into nothingness, void
of your beeping heart monitor,
void of the toll
of church bells
ringing in my ear.
to a bed, tubes and needle tips,
puncturing your arm, abdomen,
pumping fluid.
I left you for a silver keg, cold
and heavy on the kitchen floor,
beer foaming out its open valve.
It couldn’t be you,
releasing the pressure
that filled my cup.
A thirsty line formed behind me.
I fumbled with the spout.
Ryan asked, how’s Jenn?
The apartment laughed,
complained about work, bad tips.
I left you for these
conversations, spiraling
into nothingness, void
of your beeping heart monitor,
void of the toll
of church bells
ringing in my ear.
Christopher Menezes holds a BA in creative writing from California State University, Long Beach and an MFA in poetry from Converse College. His work has appeared in literary publications like Switchback, RipRap, Rockvale Review, Gold Man Review, Untenured, and others. He works as a copywriter in southern California, where he lives with his wife and dog and tries to surf and play music as much as possible. Check him out at christophermenezes.com or Instagram @menezes_christopher.