“For Hugging My Friend
Susan”
The severity of our situation struck me
The night my friend Susan arrived
“Heyyyyyyyy! So good to see you!”
Arms outstretched we hugged
A split second unconscious
Reflex
Then I remembered
We are supposed to be social distancing
Increasing physical space
At least six feet between bodies
If we don’t want to be infected
If we don’t want to be a statistic
If we don’t want to be trapped
In our bedroom
With a corpse
I saw that video
I withdrew from her embrace
Her mouth moved
But I couldn’t hear her words because
I could still feel her energy on me
Pressing into my chest
Wrapping around my back
My nose in her hair
Breathing in molecules
Of her
I escaped
As soon as I could (politely)
Running to the safety of my house
My skin prickling with panic
Tearing off my clothes
Cursing myself for being
So stupid
For hugging my friend
Susan
Bio: Cooper Gillespie is a writer and musician. She was raised in the wettest parts of the Pacific Northwest but escaped to California as soon as she was able and was overjoyed to discover the sun actually exists. She is an MFA candidate at UC Riverside-Palm Desert, and her work has previously been published in Writer's Resist. When she's not writing, she is playing bass and singing in LANDROID. Presently, she resides in Landers, CA with her husband and their two enchanting hounds. Learn more at coopergillespie.com.
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