Olivia Sung (age 14)

ALL’S FAIR

The bell rings And Love and Hate come in for lunch Love orders soup with coffee Hate orders salad with whiskey I return balancing two plates, a mug, and a shot Love reaches for their plate as I move to put it down Hate makes no offer to help I place down the drinks and turn to walk away From behind me I hear Hate’s voice for the first time “I ordered wine,” they say In one moment I’m dry In the next I have whiskey in my eyes Love’s eye twitches Hate looks proud From the neighboring table I hear Sense, Composure, and Judgment go silent My eyes blur as they water Vaguely I hear Love yelling I look up and lock eyes with Hate Love not-so-gently pushes Hate forward Hate turns away “Sorry,” they say Love gives me an awkward smile and takes out their card to pay the check Their hand is hit away when Hate’s card takes its place instead Love and I get whiplash as our necks turn in Hate’s direction Hate plays with the ring on their empty hand Love and I’s mouths open in identical ‘o’s as I silently take the card Hate’s card declines Love pays the rest of the bill—from 2024 Rattle Young Poets Anthology

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Why do you like to write poetry?

Olivia Sung: “I love the flexibility of being free from grammatical rules. Poetry allows me to manipulate words in the way that I see fit while still granting me the freedom to express myself in a unique way that all other mediums cannot. I also love the beauty in poetry, in that it is able to capture the charm of both the little and large things in life.”

Related* “Domestic Violence” by Olivia Bourke * “To the Woman Who Ruled ‘Every Rape Is Not a Gender-Motivated Hate Crime'” by Bayleigh Cardinal * Odi et Amo – Hate and Love and the Poet’s Soup by Art Beck