Summer

Her name was Summer

Fitting, for she appealed to everyone and was over too soon

Ironically, she hated beaches and sunshine

And me

Especially me, always me

She liked her martinis dirty and her shoes clean

She liked opinionated women and silent men

Maybe that's why she detested me

I was always too quiet for her taste

At least that's what she said when she slammed her door in my face last April

But I always came back for more

Her ringtone still haunts me

Like the Tell-Tale Heart, it beats in my ears

Ding ding ding, little bells

So different from her voice

While other girls I'd dated were posh princesses

She was nails sharp as her wit and tongue venomous as the snake bracelets she wore

Which is to say not at all but she liked to pretend it was

She used to bleach her own hair

And wear vintage dresses that she insisted made her feel dignified

A leading lady, Marilyn Monroe, that's what she wanted to be

I was Norma Jeane, she used to say

Plain, boring, easy to be rid of

And she was the blonde bombshell with more movies than I had friends

She was truthful to the very end

Harsh, blunt like a dull knife, yes

But they were the quirks of her personality

And, so, as I sit here, on the ground by her headstone

I know that she was summer in every meaning of the word

Sunshine, bright as the sparkle in her ocean blue eyes

It swept you in, for a moment, for as long as she'd let you bask in it

Until she got bored

Found another beachball to play with, another sandcastle to jump on

And then, the vacation was over and now, I have to pretend I don't miss it

Even though Summer calls to me, says don't you regret me leaving so soon?

No, I don't