Chaos

Chaos

Jan 4

Written By Dane Dowell

There you were—

Shirtless,

Seductive,

Surreal.

Your back to me,

Your body contorted,

You began to paint on the wall.

The house, a memory from my past—

Its walls, the color of cream,

The carpets, a white, serene.

Each stroke was intended,

Measured with precision,

An outline, black and white.

A portrait of a singer, shaded with grays:

Black eyeliner,

A stern brow,

An artist’s gaze.

I admired from my seat the beauty before me—

Both the artist and his emerging tableau.

Your strokes felt restrained;

Your back was sculpted, tense,

As if you were wrestling with some unseen defense.

And then the scene changed—

Chaos ensued

When the paint you decided to throw.

An eruption of energy,

My eyes grew wide.

“What in the hell are you doing?”

Calculated strokes became imprecise splatters,

A collage—no respect for form or structure.

Raising your arm,

You flung the brush with such fury.

The walls and carpet,

Now a kaleidoscope of color.

I couldn’t believe it.

I was stunned and yet entranced.

You challenged every fiber of my being.

Wild and reckless,

Both ruin and wonder—

How your passion burned, unbridled.

I tried to clean the walls,

To wipe away the spots.

I rolled up the rug and set it aside.

I sought to restore order to my home,

To its clean and plain aesthetic.

But it was no use—

Like a levy that breaks with the Wolf Moon tide,

Your paint kept spreading.

The world of black and white now drowned in color.

I was stressed,

I was unsettled,

Too much whimsy in my carefully curated world.

But there was a beauty

In this bouquet of painted splashes and streaks,

Such rich and untamed hues.

Then you came up and hugged me from behind.

You wrapped your arms around my chest.

You held me tight.

Your breath entwined with mine.

My body taut, pressed against your embrace.

But with each exhale,

You gently pulled me closer,

As I released all my resistance.

It was the most beautiful feeling—

Wrapped in your arms.

You were warm and steady and safe.

And I felt a peace—one I’ve never known.

You and I, in the mess, all alone.