Staples

by Deborah P Kolodji and Michael Dylan Welch

First published in Frogpond 41:2, Spring/Summer 2018, page 72. Originally written 12 October 2013 in Seabeck, Washington.

compensation plan

the stapler jams

on my copy Debbie

a password written

on a sticky note Michael

hole punch confetti

their office romance

no longer secret Debbie

frosted windows—

whiteout

on the employee handbook Michael

our Christmas ornaments

hung with paperclips Debbie

layoff notice—

she hands me

the staple remover Michael