Her Body

Stepping out of the tub,
Nancy waited
For the cloud to clear,
Then found a blue ring
At the bottom
Of her pregnancy test.

Later she cruised
Downtown like a foreigner
Looking for hap-
Piness and found
The clinic, next door
To the takeout.

One legal visit fixed
Her up for good;
Her boyfriend even paid
For dinner that night,
For her sixteenth
Birthday, not knowing

She had lost her
Appetite, no longer
Wanted to touch
Her steak. She left it
Cold on the table,
Not saying a word.