“Jellybeans don’t have gluten…”
She offered, as if that negated the fact
That she ate half a bag before
I woke from a sound sleep.

I stood at the side table
Watching her munch on
Unsafe foods for her
Gentle belly
Knowing she would soon experience
Pain
Cramping
And a hundred needles
Pulsing through her
Gut
Ill since birth
Since
Pre-birth
Since I couldn’t feel her kicking
My own insides

It’s almost worth seeing her in pain
If it means I am seeing her.

How awful it feels
To admit that…