Zoe Davis – Just sink
she whispers, sun-cut ocean lapping kisses at my neck.
Drop
into the abyss of moss and stone and dive back,
back to the beginning, when the world
was a reflection of the divine.
Breath soft pressed into parted lips
bubbles a promise of exploration. There is only
halo-light to guide us now, pillars of some great hall arcing above
forming entrance through a window
this exuberant thief simply wishing to steal a view of all that once was.
Yet these are no mortal remains, built by hands that once cupped manna. This empire drowned
beneath the waves
temples burning as they fell, crude and meteoric
into the throne of the Pacific. I see scars burnt on white marble; tumbled statues weeping, cracking the fairest of faces.
Stained glass mackerel dazzle, and I am hooked, following her jellyfish form
robes cascading round smooth pebble legs
pulsing, in time
to my quickening
heartbeat.
There is warning in her fathomless eyes as she grasps my cheeks
for the second time
lips harpooning my own
in the ruins of Heaven
where only the sirens remain and
I am caught.
Oh, I am caught.
Zoe Davis is an emerging writer and artist from Sheffield, England. She studied English Literature at Lancaster University and writes in a number of styles and genres. When she is not writing, Zoe can be found drawing, baking, and playing para ice hockey- just not at the same time. You can follow her on Twitter @MeanerHarker where she is always happy to have a virtual coffee and a chat.
Artwork: Jesus Walks on Water by Letitia Jiju
Letitia Jiju is an Indian poet who through her work explores the intermingling of mother tongue, religion & generational trauma. Her poems have appeared/are forthcoming in trampset, ANMLY, The Lumiere Review, Moist Poetry Journal and elsewhere. She reads poetry for Psaltery & Lyre. Find her on Instagram/Twitter @eaturlettuce.