The candy I steal
from the drug store
is sweet.
Is it sweeter than the candy
I buy
when at the drug store?
Dunno.
I don’t buy candy at the drug store
ever.

I buy candy from a newsstand
or a wholesale club
or discounted at a ninety nine cent store
after the holidays.
But a drug store?
Why would I buy there?

Why would I steal from the drug store, though,
in particular?
Why not steal candy from a bank
or a baby
or from strangers?
Why not take candy from lawyers,
like my grandma always advised against?

I take my candy in drug stores
for free
as I pocket pieces,
providing them
to myself
as future payment
for things I haven’t offered.
Maybe it’s because drugs are bad
or candy is already sweet
or that a security guard at a Rexall tried to touch me decades back. I don’t know the cause
I just know I have a need
for speedily pulling off petty thefts
so I can have my fill
of Alexander the Grapes
or Smarties
or $100,000 Bars.

I guess I might just have a Steal Tooth.