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raised voice, the slow crumble of
my own self worth, they grabbed
me and screamed into my face.
"You could never understand!"
Maybe you're right,
but I know one thing.

you didn't need to hit me
to have been abusive.
I've sat on this poem for a while, not wanting it connected to my name. It's one thing to admit a relationship went sour, or sensitive feelings, but I always struggled to say the big A towards one of them. This is me taking that power from them, refusing to be quiet about something that cut so deep. Abuse is a deservingly strong word for that entire relationship, and I refuse to dance around it anymore.
Spicy Digits Jun 27
She painted me in violent red
Dripping oil and
Strokes of toxic lead

Crafted bloodied battle scenes
Of her, martyred
Me, dead

She painted her face
On every soldier, replaced,
And sold it museum to museum,
Showcased

I am the silenced pawn,
Exhausted
A lifetime of submission
Fanning her mania,
Supported

I jumped ship, swam to shore
Stitched my head closed
Drew lines in the sand,
Ended my own war

She sings to the world her lies
Still, now
And paints me in violent red
From the cut she made,
From the wounds she bled.
izzmidnight Mar 7
Sorry
that I've blocked your calls
for months on end
but I still listen to the voicemails
that you send.

Sorry
that sometimes I'm mean,
treating you like jewelry
I've used to numb the pain
and all of the grief.

Sorry
that I change my mind
so frequently each day,
never meaning to use you
or pull you every which way.

Sorry
that I still know your birthday,
that my favorite songs became
your favorites too,
and that just won't fade away.

Sorry
that I couldn't be better for you
and that I still can't believe
anyone could ever
be in love with me.

Sorry
everything wasn't better
and I was so naive and blind
to the way we were
always leaving each other behind.

Sorry
that I run when things are good
and stay when things are bad,
I guess I never understood
what we had.

Sorry
that I flinch every time
you lay your eyes on me
because you do it like no one else—
like I'm someone you can please.

Sorry
that I broke your heart,
my ignorance strikes again
because things didn't get better
and you couldn't see the end.

Sorry
that I couldn't love you
or be better for you, baby
but someone will love you,
it just won't be me.
I really appreciate comments and feedback! :)
You came back
Slinking from the shadows where you’d been left.
Pathetic creature, thirsty for anything-
willing to drink poison for the sake of a smile.

Bearing the scars of my teeth in your throat,
Why force me to suffer the guilt of being cruel to you?
My thorns cut you while I veiled you in gilded tendrils.
You writhed in agony with a smile on your face-
Delirious, lost, unaware of your situation.

I could have killed you in an instant.
But I let you go.
And you came back.
Khoisan Dec 2024
They cast the first stone
from behind saber tooth
of decay.
hannah Dec 2024
the words fell softly upon her skin
whether good or bad
that’s a mercy
only a touch could bring

they floated gently,
a caress.

she is numb to the pain
sometimes the line is crossed unknownst to the victim
Eve Jun 2023
Those eyes, so striking;
Hiding such deception
   •looking only to gain
Not to save and restore
But to corrupt and pain
Yet, I let you love me
For I am filth, ensured
To give you everything
For just your phony love
For just your presence.

Those lips, so intoxicating;
Dishonest with such precision
     •Each word a poison, sweetly steeped,
To keep my heart in darkness deep.
Your potion’s spell will never wane,
Your charms both thrilling and profane.
Though forged in falsehood, they delight,
And I, mere human, seek their light.
Your deceit becomes my fragile tether,
Your lies preserve my stormy weather.
Oh, how I need this tempest, fierce and wild
To soothe my chaos, broken and beguiled.

That touch, so mesmerizing;
Fatal with such bruising intent
    •love, it is you, and you alone
That can wreck me so beautifully
Each caress, a dagger cloaked in silk,
Each bruise, a hymn, each tear, a thrill.
You play my mind, a victor proud,
And I’m enthralled, your captive bowed.
Your hands both clothe and strip my soul,
Fulfilling voids, making me whole.

That presence, so alluring
A beauty borne of aching torment.
•Yet here I stand, my burdens vast,
Ignoring how my weakness casts
Its shadow on the strength you feign,
Your love a balm, a binding chain.
I see you trying, in your way,
To love me how your heart conveys.
And though it burns, I crave the flame,
For in your ruin, I find my name.

-fir.m
Alex Oct 2024
I have just taken the first breath of fresh air after being held underwater for so long that I thought for sure I was going to die.
I could’ve sworn I’d already gotten out of the water a long time ago,
I remember fighting for so long to swim out,
But no, I remember now.

Just as I had caught sight of the shore there was a man there rushing to help me out.
Thank god because I was exhausted after fighting so hard for so long,
I do not know if I could’ve gotten out without help, and I told him as much.
He offered me such kindness that it seemed easy to put my trust in him,
And so I did.

I looked over my shoulder one last time to take in the place I had run from and prepared to say my final goodbyes to it,
After all there had been good memories made here too,
Before I had been pushed in,
Although those seemed like forever ago now.

I take a deep breath and start to turn my head forward once again,
But all of a sudden my legs are no longer there on the ground holding me up.
I do not know what is going on but the water surrounding me threatening to enter my lungs feels so familiar,
I almost let it consume me.

I did not even realize I was being held under until he loosened his grip for what was only a moment,
But that was all it took for me to take that first breath and run.
Lizzie Aug 2024
When you fall in love with a mean man you’ll find yourself truly believing that you deserve the misery. The fighting, the hurt and the crying feels all too consistent. Uneasy becomes your default setting as you find yourself walking on eggshells to avoid the anger. You’ll forget how you once loved the sensation of skin-to-skin contact the more you catch yourself flinching at his touch. When he points out that you’ve gotten distant you wont even notice how guilt melts into consent as he takes what he tells you he deserves. It’s alright, he loves you. 
If you’re anything like me you’ll believe that you’re not enough. You’ll believe that it’s your fault when he starts a fight. If only you could do better, then he’d have no reason to be upset. You wont believe it when your mom tells you it isn’t healthy to come home crying every time you see him. You wont believe your friends when they tell you that you deserve better than a possessive man who won’t let you out of his sight. Worst of all, you certainly wont believe yourself when you’re brain is screaming that you cant take it anymore; because your heart is screaming even louder, “He loves me!”
jocelynn Jun 2024
|content warnings in notes|

refuge in the maze
i hide within
bushes and brambles

Mother, why did you pursue?
i've seen you stabbed
and bleeding
sweaty crouched within
bushes and brambles
you never made me bleed
why do you make me run?

911 phone calls
hiding in the closet
save me - God!
my annual prayer
intercede

Mother, why did you track me down?
i leave my life and love
behind
abandoned maze
save me - God!

sleeping in your sheets
homes has changed
the waking world
betrays my memories
pleated in my breaths are
cut off silent screams

overlayed with reality
are dreams
chased shoved
falling from family
i hide within
painful realities
as they become my dreams
CW: violence, blood, family conflict
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