Baseball bats and salivating mouths in a square room, doors pocked
once again i'm alone inside a crowd, a misplaced throw, a misplaced swing and everything unfolds
a microcosm of humanity, a microcosm of cold…the waves wash over another
anxiety, proximity erupting from the chemistry of testosterone, isolated until the first fists fly
instincts pushed to breaking points, surging bodies, snapping joints
two shoes lost inside a fray, two socks on laminated hardwood
360 degrees into harms way
a length of lead grazed the side of my head
as others fall and others leave and others show their vampire teeth
two chunks from my neck, four lips that drip with skin, socks that slide as the blood runs down my neck or over two strange chins
there is no way out of detention
rage pushed a doorway down
fear carried me past the last contusions hurled at bodies on the ground
dizzy terrified awake in sweaty skin
"mom, i'm never going back to school again"