Stipulated Conditions

We had kissed once, briefly.
She wanted separate bedrooms.

I am wondering about holding hands
hoping for a third date
but she is in final negotiations.

She lists her conditions.
Separate bedrooms.
Our vacations separate
as well, so that
the relationship will stay fresh.

I am hearing this message that says
NO
but she thinks she is saying:
YES.
Big-time yes.

We have exchanged one kiss.
No more than four seconds. Less.

Also on the list is this guy
who comes to town
every few months.
She needs to explore
that relationship, see
where it will go.

We have kissed only once.
Briefly.

back to issue

Timons Esaias is a satirist, writer and poet living in Pittsburgh. His works, ranging from literary to genre, have been published in twenty-two languages. He has been a finalist for the British Science Fiction Award, and he won both the Winter Anthology Contest and the Asimov's Readers Award. His story "Norbert and the System" has appeared in a textbook, and in college curricula, so yes, he is required reading. He was shortlisted for the 2019 Gregory O'Donoghue International Poetry Prize. His full-length Louis-Award-winning collection of poetry—Why Elephants No Longer Communicate in Greek—was brought out by Concrete Wolf.

He teaches in Seton Hill University's MFA in Writing Popular Fiction program. People who know him are not surprised to learn that he lived in a museum for eight years.