little black book

i.

the first time she heard me
i was already three pints in
at max volume

i found out she’d giggled 
in hindsight
which set the tone
me always loud
her speaking in silence
no subtitles
only making sense
to each other
three months after

ii.

i thought he was hot
even without the beer
and the prosecco
and the whisky

but then in the middle 
i looked down and
he said my name
in a voice that 
made my stomach
grow in on itself

so as soon as
he was done 
i got the nightbus
even though it was
5.30 in the morning

iii.

she told me
if i said another word
she’d make me regret it

i blinked 
and dared her
with my smirk instead

iv.

apparently my voice
made him wince
vowels so loose
he drowned in them

so he shipped me off
to the accent factory
swapped out my dark ells
did his juty so i didn’t 
tawk funny enny maw

v.

our bodies had already spoken
before we did
i wondered about 
the pitch
the accent
how his mouth would move
with words inside it
teasing consonants
between his teeth and lips

his voice wasn’t as deep
as i expected
he laughed when i said hello
because he thought
i sounded like 
a radio 4 presenter


Written by Maddie Jones

Written by

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