/

Gray Areas

It's the gray areas that bother us most
hounding us with their neither-nor

their seeming disinterest
sneering at us over pale, cold shoulders

thumbing their noses at us
as they stroll with their umbrellas

to the corner candy store
to fill their pockets with jaw-breakers;

tugging at our bedsheets at three AM
sending us to the kitchen

for the last piece of apple pie
already eaten by the cat

leaving us standing at the sink
scrubbing our hands with disinfectant

asking ourselves, how can this be happening?;
returning again and again to entice us

with their posturing
their empty seductions

eluding us as we
in stubborn desperation

dust off the bicycle that's been sitting
in the garage since the yearbook

to pedal feverishly through empty streets
beyond the city limits

and into the painted flatlands
as if there were a chance.