On a Balcony by Jenna Benson

The watermelon drops.

Smack! - a million chunks with red rivulets winding through siltstone squares

black seeds tease black ants whose lines seethe

pick them off one by one 'til they tango with the rivulets

and claim success and disregard the sticky red that stains to follow well beyond the expiration date.

Eight years of age, surrounded by matrilineal cousins and diving fruits by the dozens

Off a balcony.

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Jenna Benson is a student at Emerson College pursuing a BFA in Creative Writing and a minor in Health and Society.