Can We Talk?

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by satirahaught

by satirahaught

Can we talk?
Can we talk about the handcuffs,
The cold steel that made my struggles bleed,
And stain the sheets,
While you took the consent before I could give it.
Can we talk?

Can we talk about the pills?
The pills that surrendered my body
before I could say yes or no,
The pills that rendered my choice penniless
in a million-dollar industry.
Can we talk?

Can we talk about the gun?
The bullets that sat like ice in the chamber
The fear ricocheting off my adrenaline
Both pumping through my veins,
Making my body limp,
A rag doll for you to manipulate to your every desire.
Can we talk?

Can we talk about the cigarettes?
The nicotine that made my head spin
While I was your own personal ashtray,
Smoke in my lungs,
Cherries on my skin,
The evidence still visible to this day.
Can we talk?

Can we talk about silence?
Delicate and silent survival,
Yes, I survived you,
And you fashioned a gag, custom made just for me,
out of societal stigma and anxiety.

Can we talk about recovery?
Recovery,
The black and blue kisses,
The cuts from your silver tongue,
Visions haunt me every night after the fact,
And remind me of how insanity taunted me.

Can we talk about taping the pieces back together every morning?
Like band-aids on shattered glass,
The cracks invisible to those who turn a blind eye.

Can we talk about clawing for a semblance of normal intimacy,
4 years later?
A necessity for most,
Seemingly
A luxury for me.

Can we talk about how you,
every single one of you,
just walked away?

Can we talk?