by Tim Lynch
BATEMAN
God… I guess… I was probably returning videotapes.
American Psycho (2000), Mary Harron & Guinevere Turner and Bret Easton Ellis
i never admitted fault / at confession either / the priest would / say whatever & i’d look down on / varnished rot-vein floorboards or / lie that i lied about / something i did not lie about what / did i have to be / sorry for everything / that happened happened / to me / i wasn’t penitent / i just felt / bad confession / i choke up every time / Boyz II Men surprises Will / for little Nicky’s christening / & memorized every way / they have to say i’m / sorry confession / when i was 11 / i downloaded torrents & a / trojan confession / at 25 i danced in the shower / to MJ’s performance of “Man / in the Mirror” & was / surprised when I slipped / as Michael’s palms swept the / stage confession / when i was 19 / a virus / wiped my computer / again confession / i think i’m the plum / my friend bit at 14 / beautiful skin & flies in the pit / bodies in the spit he / wretched confession / i had so many / secrets i thought i was / happy confession / i was never found / by a woman / to be what i am / i told her & left her / lonely confession / sure it was more but always / i made sure / i was / clean confession / my boy told me hey / but you’re still a good / dude confession / the devil speaks / to you in your own / voice he’s no / ventriloquist confession / at 27 i tore down drywall / strapped on a mask / & stripped out lath / i sawed wall studs & pocketed dust / sat fetal on the piled curb / & a guy said come on / man don’t do / that / i said thanks & went on / sobbing on / concrete between two cans boiling over with my / trash confession / i wiped my face i felt / better i did not / change
Tim Lynch was awarded a 2025 Emerging Artist Fellowship by Delaware Division of the Arts. His poetry appears most recently in Tupelo Quarterly, ONLY POEMS DAILY, and Gather, with fiction in StoryQuarterly, Broken Antler Magazine, and Afterimages. His work has been nominated for Best of the Net, Best Microfiction, and the Pushcart Prize. He lives in Delaware, where he is a paraprofessional for children with disabilities.