Fifteen
by Jerry Hamby

She lounges by the pool, a slender blond
in her mid-twenties, chair positioned
for maximum exposure to the sun.
When I approach to strike up a conversation,
she squints at me beneath a visored hand,
sits up in her chair, and pulls a bikini strap
onto her dark brown shoulder.
She sips a Tequila Sunrise and balances
the sweating glass on her lifted knee.
I ask how long she has lived here, and she observes
that she has never seen me before.
"Just visiting a friend," I explain as she draws
a Virginia Slim from her cigarette pouch.
I fumble for my Zippo and ask her to repeat
her name. "Memory," she whispers,
then pauses with an elliptical smile.
"Memory Lane," she adds behind a stream
of smoke. "Now let me guess your age."

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Fifteen by Jerry Hamby

Fifteen
by Jerry Hamby