Why, she wondered,
were the symptoms of infection
still lingering like a stubborn cold?
When they strap him to the gurney
doubts cloud her mind.
Was it a thought or a memory
of the times he approached
when her ears swelled, nose ran,
and head constantly ached?
Had she been fighting an urge?
Why couldn’t he understand
that she loved Gnasnos the android?
The thought of making love to a human
turned her stomach.
Humans loving humans insulted the law,
infected earthlings with strange illnesses,
was punishable by death.
How dare he sing love songs to her,
reading silly poems
professing that his heart ached
because Cupid shot it
with an arrow, her name
etched on the point.
He blamed her for his love fever,
scorching heat that could be extinguished
by her love.
He testified that immersed
in clouds of malaise,
he was infected by her love.
She swore she saw the rash
forming a heart on his irises
that expanded with each heartbeat.
Why do her lips swell
as she looks at the condemned?
When they insert the chemicals;
she closes her eyes,
releases a Pandora’s box of taboos,
and imagines herself
lying there with him.
Sandusky, Ohio, poet and writer, Francis Wesley Alexander, is constantly writing. He currently has poems in Haibun Today and Scifaikuest. His book, When the Mushrooms Come, is out now and available at Infinite Realms Bookstore.
Published 8/15/19
