Between 7 and 10

She fell in love between 7 and 10.

His outstretched hand palm up
enticing her to join him in a lover's embrace.

A gracious acceptance.

A tender kiss.

The plunge of her heart as it collided with his...
while they fell into love
between 7 and 10.

Warned

If you knew what was good for you
you'd keep your distance.

My sweet, innocent face can actually be
quite deceiving.

I'll draw you in with a smile, a laugh...
a gentle touch of the hand.

But if you'd taken the time to look in my eyes...
you would have seen what was behind them.

Don't come too close.

I'll wait patiently day after day for you to surrender
your heart to my open hand and
I'll still be picking pieces of it out from between
my teeth while you're asking yourself what happened.

Don't say you weren't warned.

And when I'm finished punishing you
and tearing you apart from the inside out...
you'll still beg for more.

They all do.

You were right to run in the other direction.

Wings

The sun shone down on my face
this morning while I was walking
bare foot on the freshly cut grass.

It welcomed me...
each soft blade carressing my skin,
the intoxicating scent of everything
living around me and under me.

Closing my eyes,
I spun in circles and smiled...
Held my arms out like wings.

I thought surely I'd have taken off
up into the sky and floated amongst the clouds
if you hadn't grabbed my toe
at the very last second.

Inside of Me

Mouth on my mouth.

Hands in my hands.

Breath for my breath.

And you lay your head gently
on my bare chest.

Listening to my heart.

The race.

It's declaration.

Taking pleasure in the moment...

and the realization that it was
you that caused the thumping
inside of me.

Lighters

We used to burn each other with lighters.

The metal on the top looked like a face.

We would keep the flame lit until the metal was blistering hot.
Hold it down on each other's legs until the image
of a smily face was seared into our skin.

15 years old.

I would sit alone in my bedroom at night
and run my fingers over the scabbed smily face
looking up at me.

Remembering how my skin had sizzled.

Remembering how much I had enjoyed it.

Jacket Pocket

Chapstick
Penny
Gum Wrapper

An old movie ticket stub that now seems
sad and tattered in your absence.

The Bear

I used to love the way blood tasted in my mouth.
The feel of a bruise on my cheek.
My face pulsing with its own heart beat.
Purple welts on my arms and ribs.

You catered to my masochistic desires.
The bear inside of me.

Held me down underneath you
and grabbed my hair.
Bit me and drew blood
while I back handed you across the face
urging you on.

These days the bear is quiet.