It doesn’t have to hurt

for me to like the feel

of shallow skin torn from deeper depths.

 

Not all cuticles run so deep

but removal

makes the edges of my being warm.

 

I might go to professionals

who tinker and snip

but I don’t wish for nails that are better kept.

 

I wish for jagged, uneven splits

to be savored and fantasized about

to be at climax torn.