i’d dug my nails hard,
through his cheek, i missed his eye
*****, he grunted, through the mouthful of blood,
he spat it out at me, the mouthful of blood,
missed but i soon had my own.

front tooth gone, lucky it’s a fake.
the stitches reopened, cleft lip he told,
people. it made sense to them, they
hadn’t known me before.
confident, pretty, happy.

everything you’d expect. he says,
you look no different, but he
can’t see inside. he can’t see
my thoughts, or the cries.
they happen far away.

They happen in the young girl,
the one before. Crying about
what will happen,
To the older me.