You are not mine,
I am not yours,
little flea
on a rat’s groin.
And still,
I miss you more
than a severe bout
of gout.
Without you, life
findeth meaning, and my heart
maketh room for small, good things.
O humgruffin, to be free
of your ire and torment.
Shall I compare thee
to a bullet dodged?
Yes.
For thou art as awful
and desired.
O maggot writhing
in a festering peach,
how I yearn
to kiss your heart
with the lips
of a thousand
dagger tips.
Steven Bruce is a writer and multiple-award-winning author. His poems and short stories have appeared in numerous international anthologies and magazines. In 2018, he graduated from Teesside University with a master’s degree in creative writing. An English expatriate, he now lives and writes full-time in Poland.