I.

Travis and I slept in the car that night,
and woke up to the taste of Virginia air.
As I tried to swish the taste away with warm water
from the plastic jug in the back seat,
he gripped my wrist and neck and told me
You were an alligator last night and tried to kill me in my sleep.

The jug still at my mouth
I screamed
I’m not a fucking alligator.
He let go, started the engine and spit out the window,
running his hands through his hair and avoiding my face.

II.

The next night I waited until he was naked, asleep in the backseat
before I changed into a gator and laid on
him like a plank, tied my gator arms behind my back and
tried to quietly convince
him
I could rescue him from the alligators
and whatever else he needed saving from.