- for D

They call scientists to confirm that the universe expands at a constant rate,
taking into account (per our request) that the atmosphere may one day envelop
the moon. Nurses enter, carrying trays of wood shavings, sharpened pencils,
and graph paper. Dormant tongues as doctors draw and observe, ensure
each axis is labeled and the same length. They show us the results –
two darkened diagonal lines, one sloping upward, the other downward.
The shaded areas and erasures represent variation. In the corner, his lungs
expand the plastic bag taut, but any change will be negligible
at first. We agree to call the chaplain most efficient with words.

Jason Fraley works at an investment firm in West Virginia and is pursing his M.B.A. His wife and cat see him occasionally. He has appeared or is forthcoming in Redactions, Confluence, Words on Walls, Pebble Lake Review, Stirring, The Salt River Review, and elsewhere.