Hiking
I measure distance in Spotify playlists
so I can’t be trusted with maps.
How long until this becomes
exhausting?
You pace out the metres and minutes,
you take three steps ahead as I want to ask
if the ridges in your face would soften
knowing you’d get there faster
without me.
Instead I point out the waterfall
pass you an earbud.
Alex Scarborough is a poet from Hertfordshire. He studied songwriting at the Institute of Contemporary Music Performance and is currently working on his first poetry pamphlet. His work is forthcoming in Cacti Fur (February 2026).