Strepitoso

Noisy, boisterous

Mary

Wood-paneled

basement

beer boxes

filling

with empties

pool-table

shaking

music

pounding

laughing

buzzing

smoky

corners

bodies

on stairs

screams

outside

more bodies

squeezing in

less and less space

less and less air

firecrackers

exploding

doors

slamming

kids

crying

floating by

Stacey vanished

and suddenly

I want

to be

above ground

where there’s

air and space

and no

noise or

people

Only me

myself

and I.

I tried this scene

but it’s

definitely

not mine.