She always helped me out of my outfit when I came home. We spent every night before bed in the bathroom, her scrubbing all the blood, chicken shit, and feathers off my body. She never minded that she could still taste my last bite during our one rationed kiss goodnight. I needed more than teaspoon-fed affection; I wanted the gore of her love. I never told her I knew how she showered after she thought I was asleep, how the steam crawled beneath the covers next to me. I’ve seen her naked more than you ever have, it said.

J. Bradley

is the author of Greetings from America: Letters from the Trade War (Whiskey Tit Books, 2019). His flash fiction “How to Burn a Bridge Job Aid” was selected for The Best Small Fictions 2019.

Author’s website: www.jbradleywrites.com