Wisdom Teeth

"wisdom teeth" by nonrev

by Kaitlyn Keegan

You held my face in your hand  

Like a glass jar of marbles, this time 

Last year—a rubber mannequin. 

My body was a stiff, rickety wooden barn. 

You held this, too, with careful firmness  

As I slept for hours. 

I remember the Otis Redding record warbling, 

“I’ve Been Loving You Too Long” with the drill 

In dissonance as they pried my head. I sucked 

In the sweet air and thought about laying 

On your chest while I counted seconds. 

Teeth. 

Tools. 

Questions. 

The steady hum and the euphoric float. 

I felt my heartbeat slow down to almost nothing and my eyes flew wide open 

And shut again. 

I thought the common laughing gas 

Thought about how little I cared 

And how strange it was 

When you wiped the blood off my fake rubber chin 

And my hands still buzzed with cold static. 

I fell deep and dark into your eyes, almost black 

Like the warm, numb night 

With no heartbeat— 

Your sweet, neutral face 

In my bed like a given, 

Like the answer to a question that I didn’t ask, 

An answer in an exhale like a year gone by. 

I touch my face where you touched it 

And I can feel the blood now 

Drooling warm down my neck and chest.