Photoshoot

A young man named Victor calls me Miss
and leads me to the small room
set up to film my closeups.

My task is to let his clean dark hands
arrange my head and chin, and tilt my nose
as he measures and marks the green wall.

We are so close: our breaths overlap,
separated only by the code of our profession.
Can you hold that? I can.

He starts to shoot. Good. Good. You’re doing fine.
Fantastic. One more—wonderful. You can relax, now.
We repeat for three more poses.

I pick up my sweater and bottle of water, thank him,
and tell him he’ll go far in Hollywood. He’s not sure
if he should laugh. He offers to escort me

to the lobby, but I know this hospital
inside and out. I could walk from Radiology
to the parking lot with my eyes shut.

And I do shut my eyes in the pale green corridor:
wanting to find out if I can sense the corners coming,
not wanting to see what lies ahead.

Published in Salomé