watching leaves collect on the surface of a pool
and the rhododendrons nod 
sweet and listless
their soft masses
press the sky apart from the roadside
then fall to the footpath
in noiseless swaths
and begin to rot

time comes over
again and again
turning the door handle without words
standing naked in the hallway
staring without speaking when you see her

small hours

Tara Leckie (she/her) is currently based in Te Whanganui-a-Tara. She mainly writes short stories, but she left her window open last summer and a poem crawled onto her pillow and bit her as she slept. You can find her at linktr.ee/taraleckie or @nonstopcricket on Instagram.