mumble jumble out of your mouth
sounds like ‘i love you’
smells like blackberry whiskey
looks like your closing eyes and hanging head
feels like skeptical ears
tastes like sticky chapstick
mumble jumble out of your mouth
sounds like ‘i love you’

blackberry whiskey
happy birthday to the birthday boy
drinking alone in his room for the first time
drinking for the first time
putting his blackberry whiskey in the freezer
fifty hours later
bringing his blackberry whiskey to friends to me
to me who won’t touch it
to friends that will
sharing his blackberry whiskey
blackberry whiskey
personally never had a fondness for blackberry
you down it comfortably
your friends switch to wine
and you keep drinking blackberry whiskey
in a milk glass
blackberry whiskey in a tumbler
and you keep drinking
mumbling jumbling rising with every new sip

closing eyes and hanging head
hanging head right next to my shoulder
my comfortable bony shoulder
will you tilt your head and lean on me
will you tilt your head in front of all these people
closing eyes do you see all these people
all three others
you saw them when you kissed my hair
with open eyes but now you have closed eyes
closing eyes and hanging head
do you realize what you’ve said
confessions lifted off your shoulder
so you hang your head instead
was it a real confession look at me
closing eyes and hanging head beside me
and mumble jumble and closed eyes

skeptical ears
my ears understood when you started slurring
you cannot drive not like this
me in the seat next to you, sipping water
skeptical ears when you say maybe you can drive
you cannot drive like this, let me
you say okay and sorry
and you hold my hand
and say sorry again for being yourself
my skeptical ears never want to hear that
yourself is what made me like you
do not apologize like this
skeptical ears wondering if honesty is your drunk trait
skeptical ears picking up on what you said
next to me on the plaid futon
skeptical ears
ears lacking self-confidence
did they hear correctly
your mumble jumble one slurred phrase

sticky chapstick
applied to my lips by my hand
an hour before we got here
at your friend’s house
sticky chapstick that hasn’t been smeared
put out of place on your lips
in front of the three people
sticky chapstick
on my lips
drunk confessions on your lips
our lips have connected before
my lips cannot understand your lips now
sticky chapstick
tasting bland on my bottom lip
that is being bitten by my teeth
my mouth is shut tight
as to prevent mumble jumble of my own

sounds like ‘i love you’
mumble jumble out of your mouth
i love you.
mumble jumble out of mine.