The fire alarm blared
inside the apartment building
and we looked at each other
like one of us
was supposed to know
what to do.
We opened the door
to people pouring
down the stairs.
We followed them
until we made it outside.
You never really know
your neighbors until
they have to carry
their lives with them
in their arms.
Apparently, the neighbor
down the hall has a turtle.
I didn’t know Lisa had
two dogs.
I sure as shit didn’t know
Paul and Chloe were hooking up,
wearing their matching robes
and disheveled hair.
Lee stuffed his pockets
with frozen burritos
that he said he stole
from the store.
May had a sandwich bag
of magic mushrooms
that she was eating
like they were pretzels.
She said she could predict
what people were going to say
before they said it.
She’d point at somebody
talking across the crowd and whisper
in your ear what they were
about to say.
I think it was just the
mushrooms talking.
The fireman came down
and said it was
a false alarm.
Somebody burned popcorn
in the microwave again.
Fire Evacuation
Ian Valor