she detested it
right down to the
ride up there
counting Denny’s
signs and cars
broke down
that fake
Aztec look
of the suburbs
it reminded her
of thin
see-through
curtains
chipped
rotten tile
the smokey
dead smell
of motel rooms
and why
she left him
for good
she thought
that time
all those busted-up plates
stacks of
ripped pictures
her good dresses
shoved in the trash can
how he called
her again
and again
till she finally
picked up
his voice
in one smog
oozing plea
and the only
thing worse
the only thing
worse than that
dry separation
was being
with him now
on this hot
vinyl seat
on another
long ride to
his mother’s