Chaser by Ryan Quinn Flanagan

I am back
on that lazy orange shag
again.

19 years old
and playing poker
for shots.

The loser having to drink.
In that basement apartment
along Burncrest Avenue.

Taking a quick chase
after each shot.

The Best of the Doors
on repeat.

Windows open for ventilation.
A broken black futon with
green pillows.

My fingers over the shag
and later the woman.

Ryan Quinn Flanagan is a Canadian-born author residing in Elliot Lake, Ontario, Canada with his wife and many bears that rifle through his garbage.  His work can be found both in print and online in such places as: Evergreen Review, The New York Quarterly,The Rye Whiskey Review, Outlaw Poetry Network, Under The Bleachers, The Dope Fiend Daily and In Between Hangovers.