a house years in the making (alternatively titled: on the instagram revenge posting)

an action independent – still action juxtaposed
bending around the shadow instead of contorting to its shade
tethered irreparably with strings of

      ;;    one part halo lit by cheap neon filament
    ;;    one part useless grudges weathered like radio static & dried rose petals
       ;;    two parts stubborn (which may be substituted with scorn if needed)
    ;;    half of a crumpled paper heart flecked with new dust
  ;;    one part better left unsaid
     ;;    one part pixelated portraits doused in the campfire smell that lingers on clothes,
           left undisturbed (optional)
   ;;    a pinch of salt water

thicker than twine and rougher still
on the skin, digging fissures like ever-changing
borders lost in war and defined by candlelight
the match – the instigator, the trigger – lives
not long enough to think
but the candle it lights burns
through both mayfly seconds and deity decades.

(    it’s my fault. i knocked the candle. the fire hit the
     drapes. the flames engulfed the room. SOS. do
     we         still         have       a           home       left?     )

Sofia Wernyj is a junior at Rutgers University, studying psychology with a minor in creative writing. She enjoys lukewarm coffee and handwritten poetry.