the accidental portrait

keys jingled as we stumbled across the street, danced around the milky way, while you tossed back white russians, i drank up what was left of you. we laughed as the stoplights turned into puddles and i found myself in the backseat of your car empty—bottles in the back seat mimicked the ones that rolled around in your eyes. slamming into whiskey that melted out of your pores, you etched constellations into my skin leaving me your fragmented whisper:

we should have stayed in park.

you left me your fragmented whisper, as you etched constellations into my skin slamming into whiskey that melted out of your pores, bottles in the back seat mimicked the ones that rolled around in your eyes, empty—I found myself in the back seat of your car, we laughed as the stoplights turned into puddles, as you tossed back white russians, i drank up what was left of you and keys jingled as we stumbled across the street, danced around the milky way.

by Rachel Nicholls

Rachel Nicholls is currently pursuing her MFA in Creative Writing, emphasis in poetry, at Chapman. She also holds a BA in Literature from Cal State, Long Beach, where her love for Beat literature and Jack Kerouac blossomed. Mainly, her passion lies with poetry; however, screen writing, and fiction are two things she wants to pursue as well. As a travel junkie, she sees literal and literary exploration key, and cannot wait for the next big adventure. Her latest publishing was in California’s Best Emerging Writers series, and she has been nominated by her MFA Director for AWP’s Intro Journals Project.