A Study of Three Bars in Brooklyn
Ally Chua
South Bar, Park Slope.
Here where it began, I suppose
and almost ended.
Thank God for your drunk dial
And that I didn’t ignore it.
Sharlene’s, too crowded and noisy.
I bought you a drink, and then,
your existential horror. Well,
I can’t solve your problems
but I can give you head. And
for a while that will be okay.
North Pole, Bergen Street.
Brick walls, 90s old-school rap
You say I don’t listen to you.
Well, true.
Sometimes.
Half the time I’m trying
to touch you or sneak in
a headbutt of a kiss.
The first time we met, you said
you could show me Brooklyn,
places only a local would know.
I have seen
your ceiling, on my back.
Your couch.
Your shower tiles.
You, you, you all this time.
Ally Chua is a Singaporean poet. She works for a botanical attraction, and writes when she's not replying to emails within seven working days. She is the 2019 Singapore Unbound Fellow for New York City, and a member of local writing collective /s@ber. Ally has been published in Quarterly Literary Review Singapore, Cordite Poetry Review, and Lammergeier Magazine. More info can be found on www.ally-chua.com.