When he touches her he takes some of her skin
and makes it his
until her skin is no longer hers
he says she is beautiful but all she hears is dead air
ringing in her ears
the stench of his words makes the air heavy
she cannot breathe
in desperation
she tries to hide in her skin but
no longer hers it is no longer safe for hiding
and there is no where else to go
she dreams of reptiles
she is a snake, long and thin and as
invisible as the wisp of smoke wafting from his cigarette
so she can slither from his fingers and
hide in the grass
morning and from the floor she picks up her skin
crumpled like clothes after a one night stand
like the creatures of her reptilian dreams
she is growing a new skin underneath the old
and this new skin is so thick and strong non one
can take it away from her
she slips the skin from the floor over her body
it is warm and familiar but she writhes in
discomfort
she can still feel his fingers pressing into her flesh
and his hot breath wetting her cheek
when she looks into the mirror an empty face
stares back her fingers reach out to tenderly
stroke the mirror face when they touch
icey glass instead of the clay-like flesh
her mouth opens in a startled "o"
she doesn't even recognizer her own reflection
has he taken so much of her she doesn't know
herself anymore?
in the afternoon when the sun reaches its zenith
her skin burns from the harsh light
she can see the marks his finders made
they do not turn fuchsia with the rest of the skin
but shine red-orange like the orb above her
do these marks make her his or do they
brand her a traitor, a traitor to herself
on his face, he displays a thin smile
slimy like the penciled in moustaches of the used-car-salesman-on-tv
he wraps his arms around her waist
and draws her body close to his until she can
feel his bood racing through her veins
when she closes her eyes she can see the two bodies
pressed together but she isn't in that skin
anymore just a silent observer he can't take her
skin because he can't see her
at dusk she returns and slips into the skin he holds
underneath hsi sweaty palms
and in her new skin she is alive and she is safe