chiaroscuro

i examined my nails. they were okay. just worn from where i hemmed them to rounded, if a little crooked edges. sometimes there would be a flat plateau where the nail clippers cleaved a line instead of rounding an edge.  there were my lunulas. little moons. the one on my thumb was the biggest. it looked like a moonrise. i had five moons on each hand. a celestial body buried under chapped cuticles, chipping nail polish. i had painted my nails weeks ago.  i used opi nail polish. i had coated each nail in three different polish. a pale blush base, then a shimmery overcoat, and then a dusting of glitter for the very top. it made my fingers twinkle whenever i waved them in the air. it distracted from the uneven cuts of my tips.  sometimes i would paint them iridescent, other times very dark. i had a black/brown polish with no gloss. it swallowed all the light and gave length to my thin fingers. spider hands, i had. i didn't wear that color often because i chipped them too often and it le