Lucy buys us both a giant red rock dummy
from a kiosk on the seafront,
unwrapping hers and licking the end of it.
That’s your sugar fix for the month, I say.
Shh, baby, shh.
She laughs,
unwraps mine,
pushes the dummy
all the way into my mouth
so I am completely gagged.
Do you have a boyfriend? Lucy asks.
I shake my head no.
Yeah, I guessed that.
You totally read as a virgin.
I keep the dummy in my mouth
much longer than is necessary.
It stops me saying the wrong thing –
telling Lucy the ways
in which
I can read her too.