Club Icarus

Partus

22 Partus Riflebutt the curve of her wool socked foot into the shoulder shove her knee down now toward her ear fingers wrapping hamstrings stretched now like pulled stitches that birthmark on her knee the flaws called the fall now on the other side of the bed the nurse locks hairy arms around the other leg just a spit of chemicals a pathology of the lonely love now know this if it’s needed as old men not her real doctors crouch into her crotch now a naked spider in the limp of fluorescents residual feelings would be natural aches of addiction but hungers fade get replaced walk out right now into a dead stomach winter at this hour of the morning no one cares for what disappears forever the baby now by heaving rips out brown and beet now so much more rip and twist from thighs lights her hot swell of earth focus on the scissors the slick purple and grey of the cord now so much black blood should there be so much black blood and no crying 23 starched hush then little hacks at air the chokes on spots of oxygen how long now since the water broke how many times do you need to say now in a hospital not now stop now please now not breathing right he says emergency now what is it she says leave now before anything can be lost in the scraping at air yes it’s a girl is she all right now which she the doctor digs rubber gloves back into her more bleeding down here than I like to see scissors thread now old hands snip now winces rip her face now see if she’s okay make her be okay she says now run down a hall as if hip deep in mud walls implode NICU doors blow open into a pool of blue swimmers too small for March now don’t feel bad feeling good she is not one of them now this way daddy someone says and now her eyes open staring wet and we are breathing right here terrified beautiful now for what the world will take ...