Man Outside My Bedroom Door
Who will it be tonight she wonders--
her grandpa? her uncle?
the next door neighbor ?
maybe it will be all three--
she longs for sleep--
yet fears it--
she drifts off--
not quite asleep
in limbo--
Her eyes flutter open --
moan escaping her lips--
despite her clenched teeth--
as she hears the footsteps
falling on the... floor--
fear floods through her
struggles not to soil herself--
let me have one
small dignity
dammit--
The door hinge groans--
sounds like an avalanche--
as it opens--a sliver of light
slashes across her form--
as she lays there waiting--
in terror--
Curling up tight into a little ball--
her blankets pulled tightly
over her head-- just pretend
you are dead she thinks--
so she holds her breath--
Hoping that just this time--
please God --he will leave
her untouched--
tries to move away--
but her damn body
is frozen in place---
like a deer in headlights--
Silent scream ricochets
through her mind--as she feels--
hands snaking their way
beneath the sheet--
bile rising in her throat--
with each insistent demand--
She struggles to stay
in the moment--
loses and goes under--
into that dark sea
of forgetfulness---
welcoming the darkness--
the emptiness it brings--
Wakes to sore limbs--
her bruised mouth--
teeth marks tattooed
upon her tender skin--
blood trickling a path
down her thighs.
her innocence
stolen again---
Selena Howard © 2010
