VALLEY OF THE DEADBEAT DADS

She sat a little ways from me,

not enough to be pointedly rude but

a statement, nonetheless.

What’s your mum been saying then?

More forceful than I meant to be,

more accusing than I meant to be,

just, more than I meant to be.

But I want the answer,

so I don’t take it back.

She glances up, then down.

Back to blue-light distractions that rot your brain.

Nothing, she says.

I nod and consider the scene,

two large cokes in a pub off the motorway,

Valley of the Deadbeat Dads.

We could go to the pictures next time? I offer,

not sure what answer I want from her. 

​

Samantha is a graduate of the University of Warwick and now works (occasionally for money) as a freelance copywriter. She lives in Coventry with her family and a cat named after the Terminator.