but you’re too normal
to have a tattoo
the cashier hissed at me
as i stood in the Target checkout
line
to pay for my shampoo and gum
she stared at my chest
the tattoo winding its way
around the tops of my breasts
the green claws of a dragon
a demon
ripping through my shirt
to have me
i blinked
and looked down
said thanks
and took my change
from her shaking hand
that she drew back
as if from the fiery breath
of my tattoo
but she kept staring at it
as if she were looking at
an accident victim
bleeding on the highway
she knew it was wrong
but she kept staring
as if she were looking at
a Victorian photograph
of a working class englishwoman
with sloping forehead and bulging
eyes
choppy hair and protruding lip
and a crooked smile
a madwoman they called her
or prostitute as they read it
on her face and body
her deviant text
i blinked again
then turned to leave the store
when my husband said
i think it suits
you