Tyrannosaurus S3x

Rory Hawkins

Feels like 65 million years roaming 

this grimy restroom and Jez 

still can’t hatch a line. He claws 

his head, digs dandruff scales from under 

nails and tries again, more on 

the snout: 

 

‘Hey, darl. What you use all that neck for?’ 

 

Words roil from primordial 

pickup soup and flop 

legless, Jez lungless. He pops 

another button of his palm frond shirt. 

Music erupts as another stalks

in. A hunter’s hush, this time:

 

‘Let’s make this bar prehistoric and head back to mine.’ 

 

The toilet intruder slashes 

at the far urinal, growling how a meatier 

man wiped his chances out. End of an era; 

chicks’ll love it all until 

the impact. Lizard-looking duck 

prowls out. Jez hisses vape fumes; 

old mate’s too many fossilised sentiments 

left him lurching in Valley sediments. 

You need colder blood, a pr3dator 

smile. Cuz Jez already knows 

life finds a way: 

 

‘Welcome to Jurassic C@ck.’ 

Author: Rory Hawkins is an English/Irish-grown & Meanjin/Brisbane-based Creative Writing student in his third year, aspiring to work in editing and publishing. From a little before preschool to around Year 3, he was a dinosaur kid. Then he discovered Bionicles. Now, he doesn’t have enough drawer space in his room. Find more of his prose and poetry through QUT’s Glass Magazine, previous issues of ScratchThat, read aloud with QUT Lit Salon, and occasionally on his Instagram @rory_writes_sometimes.

Artist: Emma Bruce is a multi-disciplinary visual artist from Yugambeh country working out of Meanjin. Her work discusses the relationship modern society has with the environment through an archival style in hopes to preserve the experience of being in the natural world. Her work hopes to invite her audience to partake in activities that nurture native flora and fauna as well as create a sense of pride to be part of it.

Editors: Bea Warren and Euri Glenn