senior prom

son

you got a lot of 'splainin' to do

reporters round your neck like a beard of bees

that hit man at the back

he's got his eye on you

but i'm the one who can take you where i please

so give me your elbow

a flash photo for the folks at home

this is just like my senior prom

the inside of your arm is soft as i lead you

lee

like a new-born marxist colt at the county fair

you'd never know from that thin-lipped little smirk of yours

that the icy hand of fate was between your knees

speaking of clammy hands

it's like i'm back in lubbock with mary francis

working to retrieve that corsage pin that fell into her blouse

and she tried to shoot me too

in a theatre just like you

and it was when i wrestled that gun away

that i looked into her captivating

mesmerizing

hypnotizing

texas blue-sky

russian-defecting eyes. my nose at the back of your neck as the elevator slows

doors cut in two by the axe of the tv lights

i want to tell the world what we both know is true

when that hit man from the first verse shatters you

mouth to mouth

your last breath in mine

death cutting in

like an all-state lineman

minus the blood

i could swear i was back at my senior prom

if this ambulance were a fairlane

and your black eye was my school ring

i would swear it was my senior prom.