by Shannon Phillips

“…write your sexual life story in five sentences…
Then… do it again…
…a third time. A fourth.” – Melissa Febos


I

His name. His name. His name. My name. Breathe.

II

Three pregnancies, two children. The first. The last. The one.
I am not a math person.

III

I lost myself in a moment that didn’t belong to me. His voice made me do it.
His hands were too important. Night knows where to find me.
Just ask.

IV

It was late. It always is.
One night, while working on an English-Arabic translation project for class, I
typed “gasp” and then reverse-translated the first noun that came up. I was
given the phrase “longing for.” I got an A.
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Shannon Phillips is a freelancer whose most recent chapbook was published by Small Fish Big Pond in 2019. She has an MFA in creative writing, and she is the editor at Picture Show Press.