The guard pays the boy and leaves him the horse
in a sunlit meadow by the oaks.

He puts his watch in the boy’s hand and taps
the hour of his return with his fingernail.

The boy pulls the wide strap tight
and stares at the fake gold.

Beside him, the horse
nibbles at wild grass.

The boy traps the sun in the dial
turning his thin wrist,
reaching out into the light.

The deep red glow of the horse,
the golden bursts from the watch –
precious things not his to keep.

And yet this joy is his alone –
who could take it away?

Meanwhile, the horse
wanders into the trees
and sinks out of sight
like a ring lost in the sea.