sara and her ruby shoes
i left her in the bowling alley
playing five pin in her ruby shoes
the alley full of wednesday boys
with their hair slicked back and wet
we were fighting about money
fighting about the rent
she was throwing strikes and spares
the lights doing tinsel things against her ruby shoes
i was keeping score
drinking spiked coke
wishing this were a different movie
and the ending wasn't so cold
wishing i didn't have to stand
and yell that i didn't care
she could take the rent
and my pay cheques
and anything else she wanted
wrap them in her ruby shoes
and stick them
i left her in the bowling alley
hitting five pin strikes
i ran up the stairs
two, three at a time
didn't even take off my bowling shoes
i thought she was a painting
i thought she was the poem
i got to the car
turned the key
and pulled away into the night
the bar was dark and full of secrets
i sat by myself near the front of the room
when the dancer appeared beneath the soft blue lights
she was wearing ruby red spiked heels
her shoes glowing under the spots
her wicked witch hair laughing
i watched her work out the fifteen minutes
she was better than most
i left when my wallet was empty
walked out to the car
cut my foot on a piece of glass in the parking lot
my size sevens still under the table in the bar
when i pulled into the traffic
my ruby red foot hit the gas
hard
Copyright © michael dennis / Ordinary Press 1982
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