Night Creatures

Between dusk and dark

at the bottom of Oak Street

the halogen glow of my headlights

falls on a group of figures

jumping

on a mattress in the middle of the road--

flashes of long, tossing hair,

a loud whoop,

laughter.

I smile. Teenage girls.

I turn right on Glenneyre

and drive on

with that sense you get

when a creature

passes in front of your car

so quickly

that you only recognize what you’ve seen

after you see it.