Naked Wishes
You started as a reflection in the mirror behind the bar.
After you sang you came down, sat, and we made eye contact.
Gave you mouth to mouth outside where the smokers stand.
The cab window a shaky Polaroid with grins and telepathy.
Suddenly awake in your walk-up cozy pillow laden lady lair.
We formed Hindu Gods contorting in the silver light pollution.
Morning blue the radiator wasn’t working. We wrapped in sour
blankets dry and hungry skipping to the kitchen for coffee, hot.
How soon you went from vision, to memory, to obsession.
The rose you wore in your hair lingered on my tongue.
My cat would stare at me as I blinked at my phone, at you.
I tried to keep it cool not to scare you away with my gaze.
Then you answered my call. I soon realized you didn’t sleep,
afraid of dreams, plagued by unhealed memories. We went
dancing plunging the mind by flushing the body in neon sweat.
You fell on the electric floor bubbling in cellophane and glitter.
Blown up balloon hands jazz spiders to darkness with no partner
weaving naked wishes across empty dungeons of surface pleasure.
Cool lava consumed you in green ectoplasm strobes, photos,
selfies, evidence, forensics, cold cases, witches born of betrayal.
A baby is crying. Is it your baby or is it you? But you say you can’t hear.
Time to go back home. Back to the mirror. Back to the first image.
To mobiles on string dangling like memories good mixed with bad.
Mom and Dad, grandfathers, ragdolls, powder make-up, and deserts.
Texted after midnight for the final scene. Arrived promised peace.
Arrived promised love. Arrived promised excitement. Arrived
promised a future. Shook with blood stained sheets. The TV on the
fritz. Eyes left of light. Me holding the bag. You, free at last. Gone.
Photo by Paddy Fineran
Westley Heine is the author of Busking Blues: Recollections of a Chicago Street Musician and Squatter (Roadside Press 2022), and a short story collection 12 Chicago Cabbies (Newington Blue Press 2021). Most recently Page Telegram Press has released his novella Picture Book, and Roadside Press has released a poetry collection Street Corner Spirits, audio excerpts of which are now available on all streaming services under the same title. In April 2025 Roadside Press will release a new collection of short stories and poems entitled Cloud Watching in the Inferno.
