Salsa and Cigarettes

I had already used up
my weekly alcohol quota in one day
and now I was eating extra strong mints
and salsa dancing in my bedroom
while staring at your Twitter feed.

I saw you had moved on from complaining
about me to whining about your yoga class.

I lit another cigarette and lay down on the bed,
thinking about how I’d rather blindfold myself
and cut off my toenails with the garden shears
than see you again.


Henry is a writer, poet and mental health essayist based in Somerset in the UK. He has a PhD in literature and creative writing from the University of Birmingham. He is the author of several poetry collections and his work can be seen in Pure Slush, Lunate, and The Daily Drunk, among other places.

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