Lucian Mattison

AFTER CLOSING SHIFT

Wring out the rag
of my body, relieve me,
strip by strip,

of my clothes,
every frayed bit obscuring
me, this tired garment

twisting in your grip.
Hold me
above your mouth.

Let me drip
onto your tongue,
winding me

like a tension spring,
my limbs pulled flush
against ribs. Drink

all of me in, my body
unraveled muslin sheets.
Climb my abdomen

onto the pomanders
of my parted lips. Close
your eyes with me.

____________________

Lucian Mattison is currently enrolled in the creative writing MFA program at Old Dominion University. His poems can be found in apt, Digital Americana, Muzzle Magazine, and other journals. He edits poetry for Green Briar Review and Barely South Review. Email him at Lucian.c.mattison@gmail.com.