Emily Vance Brown

by Clementine von Radics

I will make jokes at my own expense,
be charming as a surprise.
I will ask about your new life
and Be Cool About It
and I will not mention Memphis.
Or how your hair feels in my hands.
I will not mention the last time I saw you.
My mouth, so far from yours, I said
I am afraid I will spend entire years
trying not to need you.
As if I wasn’t certain.
As if this wasn’t my confession.