Virginities

one for hurting / for loveless / for rinsing yourself off afterwards

and meeting your eye in the bathroom mirror and saying firmly

you have not made a mistake / for a mistake

 

for knowing who you are / for confirmation

for otra lengua / for translating / for relearning how to share a bed

for a cold spreading in the stomach afterwards like too much milk

 

for feeling safe again / for screaming / for screaming

afterwards / for knowing your limits / for being subject

for being subjected / for losing, briefly, count

 

one for weariness / for déjà vu

one for been here before / for might as well

one for losing yourself

 

 

Finlay Worrallo is a queer cross-arts writer studying Modern Languages at Newcastle University. His work is published in VIBE, Queerlings, 14, the Braag’s speculative fiction chapbook Unfurl: Portrait of Another World. Instagram: @fworrallo