MICHAEL CHANG

i am only beautiful for u

am i right to love u this way

ur the king of cutting corners

plath’s blue, furious boy

so shiny & strange

eyes bulging w/ concentration

my words bright birds

unslowed by chagrin

that thing abt believing ppl who show u who they are? stupid

problem is, most ppl are fucked up

honey-machine

know when u are beaten

thankfully, loneliness is rather harmless

i won’t stick any of u unless i can stick all of u!

male w/ patchy facial hair complimenting my sunglasses in havana

my impulses when talking to u r: (1) stroke u ... (2) talk abt my poems

imagining u in crop top

target boys applauding rather than expressing uncontrollable disgust

snoopy balloons floating down fifth

i m thirsty for ur innocuous droplets

the dew on ur glabrous chest

highly desirable taste of anus

peach melba & potential insemination

most poems just verbs + body parts

i m v sensitive abt slit

你让我疯狂

u make me go mad!

when i receive u

ur wearing ur best smile

captive to u

like inflight movie in economy minus

i just can’t look away

MICHAEL CHANG (they/them) is the author of several collections of poetry, including ALMANAC OF USELESS TALENTS (CLASH Books, 2022) & SYNTHETIC JUNGLE (Northwestern University Press, 2023). Tapped to edit Lambda Literary's Emerge anthology, their poems have been nominated for Best New Poets, Best of the Net & the Pushcart Prize. They were awarded the Poetry Project's prestigious Brannan Prize & serve as a poetry editor at the acclaimed journal Fence.