view from july

late night
the fair had been closed for about 20 minutes
the last few people trickled out and went home

the hottest month brought some sweaty nights
she and i went running

we ran laps around the fairgrounds
past the games, the bottlenecks, the rides
there was no reason to run
we weren't escaping
nor exercising
we were acting upon impulse

every once in a while when she past my left side
i caught a glimpse of her eye
and didnt even need to see her mouth smiling to understand this

out of breath our tired bodies sat on
misty plastic chairs at the potatoe pancake booth
nothing to eat but sugary pink watermelons

we went home with carnival songs between our teeth
and trashy perfume on our necks

i fell asleep next to her on the way home
and my legs still felt like they were running