Tryst by Lenna Jawdat

The sun sets

as we sit

sipping spritzers

sparkling elixirs

from cold cups

wet / with condensation

Slurping opalescent oysters

saline and succulent

glistening with liquid

translucent, reminiscent

of cool cerulean ocean

cascades, (c)rush, crustacean

Eyes glitter in the golden

shards of slanted light

honeysuckle scent and firefly glint

as the streetlamps alight

summer nights

s t r e t c h

languidly as a lithe cat

Murmurs

(((echoing))) in the cool vestibule

shoes clicking down the corridor

we’re hushed

whispering, on the cusp

anticipating

the first brush

of your fingers

against

my bare back

A shiver

the secret thrill

of not knowing

whether

you’re still

with her

---

Lenna Jawdat (she/her) is a poet and therapist. She has been published in Stone of Madness Press and is forthcoming in FreezeRay. She loves bubble tea and growing herbs. She lives in Washington, DC (Piscataway/Nacostan land) with her partner, two cats, and a rotating cast of foster kittens