IN THE HOUSE OF RUNAWAYS

by leah neiboer

 

 

 

where night will shipwreck

its lonesome line

of stars—

 

where we ran

once to see what it was like—

​

being unconstellated—

 

a boy there

with his jeans drying on a bicycle frame

​

said

I’m ancient

 

like he’d just learned what that word means

and wasn’t someone coming

up out of his body then

 

they’re gonna put my body in a big fancy box

in the museum

next to the dinosaurs

 

you know how

he said

 

like they did in Egypt

he kicked an imaginary wheel

​

looked up at my face

said

you’re the moon,

you’re like that too