English in the Library

Jake is a shaved head
He has scars and tattoos and biceps like American footballs
He is scared of a pencil
Those black and yellow markings
Its poisonous point
The rubber on the end for erasing a man's self-worth.

Tat is wearing shades of blue
He has dreadlocks, a bitch, and a string
Of convictions that he wears around his neck like pearls
He is afraid of paper
All that emptiness to spill his guts.

Stig is a fellow who rarely speaks
His hair is matted and grey
He is terrified of a book
For he is too old to turn new leaves
And ignorance, like silence, speaks volumes.