The meal that went wrong

Plastic film stretched tight

like skin over a wound.

Half-frozen lasagna flopped,

a wet flop on the plate.

Fluorescent lights

reflected off the cracked tray,

the smell sour, bitter—

a warning I ignored.

Fork stabbed through cold layers,

every bite a punishment,

a mess that tasted

like forgetting to care.

I ate it slow, regret thick

as the sauce congealed,

wondering how hunger

could be this cruel.