orange peel smiles stretch from ear to ear
and the sounds of cinnamon laughter
erupt from the stars we hit with baseball bats.
the fireworks emulated the sun for seconds
as i found you in a hammock at the dock
with honeysuckle on your tongue.
you were pointing at the brushstrokes
that kissed the horizon and whispering stories to the river
about the time sugar lured you
to drag thorns across your wrists until they bled red roses.
i carried you away and took you to the fields
of worn-out fences and broken branches,
where white sparks and tootsie rolls
hid behind the bushes with us.
paper umbrellas shielded our faces from the water,
but gave into the fire we fed when it began to fade.
we sat on the edge of a pool of icing and lollipops
and watched the umbrellas burn away with our worries.

we've never been this close to harmonious embraces
but i wish we had sooner.