he had a black eye
he was proud of
like some of his friends
it made him feel somewhere outside
of everything and everywhere he'd been
like his brothers
he emptied himself
and played it safe
like their father
he wanted to remember
but he almost always
forgot what he was gonna say
black eye
black eye
when he realized
that this one was here to stay
he took down
all the mirrors in the hallway
and thought only of his younger face
black eye
black eye
