Walking in the middle of the road with a bottle of beer in hand, I see this orb, this glowing, yellow and orange orb, and in my drunken state, I imagine it to be X. As it hovers above the trees before swooping to the ground, it fizzes and hisses like one of those sparklers you wave about on bonfire night. Watching it while taking a swig from my bottle, I move a few steps forward, and as if becoming aware of my presence, the orb hesitates before zipping away. It climbs into the sky again then drops and rushes in my direction causing me to duck. The bottle falls from my hand and rolls into the gutter spilling the remaining liquid. I bet it’s her, I think. She did that on purpose the little... Getting back to my feet, the orb flies upwards with a life of its own, shining so bright against the darkened sky. It’s quiet out. There’s a distant hum of traffic coming from town, but other than that, there’s just the beat of my heart and the kiss of electricity that grows whenever she approaches. Losing sight of her, I look around then notice her spiralling through the air like a maple leaf. If I strain, it’s almost as if I can hear her laughter, ringing in my ears like the sound of the sea coming from within a shell, like one of those I would pick up as a kid on a day trip to the shore then listen to the entire car ride home. Smiling at the memory, here she comes again, snaking her way along the wet grass of someone’s front lawn. Stood there like a cowboy in a shootout at high noon, I wiggle my fingers in anticipation, and as she bursts ahead, I can’t help but smile even though I’m sure she’ll do her best to take me down.

A Journal for Damned Lovers UK

A Journal for Damned Lovers US

Anthology UK / Anthology US