Ecdysis

Roger Li

Under the Shower. Mohammed Aldami

Warm water spills atop
steaming skin & down
my neck where nooses
slip unseen.

Taut as harp’s strings
they tear my melody
in two.

Peeling layer  by  layer,                 
nails scratch desperately at
wrinkled wrapping 

 . 
. 
   .   .   .. . . 
      .    .  .. . . 

            until droplets glisten​ ​
down a shriveled chest
& melt through
a soft heart.

This fresh slice of steak, each fiber
separated into
tough grains.

Roger Li is a high school student from the Chicagoland area. His work has been featured or is forthcoming in Journal & Topics, Versification, Emerge Literary Journal, Sublunary Review, TheWeightJournal, and Quatrain Fish among others. In his free time, besides writing, he enjoys cycling and hanging out with friends. He has a husky named Wilson from Texas. @rogerli53110