(Photo by author)
DEATH OF AN ADOLESCENT
Grow Up, Moon Boy collection. #11
(Written in 2010. Updated 2021.)
It's getting dark, fading black,
my veins have frozen,
cracking
like chilly
arctic rivers
If you're confused,
don't worry, I think
you'll soon understand—
I'm rewinding it
all the way back for you
to the place where the murder began
The sky, then,
was still blue and cloud-free
allowing for unimpeded
glittery sun rays
blanketing miles of lush, grassy green, and not a
single frown, I'd bet,
could you have found that eventful afternoon
It really was a picture-perfect,
beautiful summer day,
where these words
to my perfect girl
I did say:
“Baby, with
confidence now, I think
I’m finally sure enough to say
that I do truly love you.”
Then, shy and timid
as can be, I silenced the fear
in my throat
and asked this question,
“Will you, maybe,
make this crazy world
just a little bit
envious, and . . . go out with me?”
I nearly cried, I must confess,
when she, my first
relationship,
nodded her precious head
and told me yes.
Sadly, though, I did not see
the evil trick this vulgar universe
played on me, for
unknowingly, wearing my sweater shamelessly,
I met my proverbial devil that day,
and a most wicked deal was made with her—
in bright, broad daylight,
with my ignorant permission,
my innocence was lifted from its
rightful place, while the
little boy of past I’d been, was deleted,
indefinitely
Gray, then, the sky
as I stared into eyes emerald green
There ended my childhood,
just age thirteen, and
somewhere far, I think I heard my mom’s heart rip
as I touched that girl's lips
In naïve bliss, my death I signed,
sealed with the kiss of an angel
cast
straight out from heaven
Lover Boy in Space
Joshua Muñoz
