Seventh Grade
Location
Twelve years old with a huge fabric binder,
a new pair of shoes,
and the exact same wardrobe as the year before.
The shoes were maroon and grey
and "only cost fifteen dollars!" my mom said.
Cousin Jacq bought them from Marshall's
because living in the new apartment
was a lot more money than the
motel was on University Boulevard.
The bullying got nasty quick but my friends and I
would roll our sweatpants up
and shaved our legs over the side of the bathtub together.
I stopped going to school.
The secrets came out of Emily's mouth
and it looked like an open floodgate in my eyes.
I tried to grab a hold of all the things slipping from my fingertips
but I was too small to catch it.
Fumbling with marbles that suddenly
weighed as much as a goddamn piano.