Scars

• Shakaya Templeton, Grade 11
• Poetry
• 2020

His eyes stare into my soul. His smile spreads like wildfires. His laughter echo’s through my body, leaving warmth, lust and comfort.

Word after Word
Hit after Hit
He watched as the blood dripped onto the floor.

Tomorrow will be a better day he’d tell himself. Nobody had to know. Pill’s numbed the pain, makeup camouflaged the cuts and bruises, jackets masked the flaws that covered his body.

And a smile
A smile hid the scars that lay beneath the skin.
His smile…… The smile that spread like wildfires.

Laughter helped him remember what it was like.
But his eyes; shone hurt, remorse and fear.
The same eyes, that made me feel warmth, lust and comfort.

He knew tomorrow wouldn’t be a better day. No matter how many pills he took, how much makeup he would use, how many layers of clothing it could take. Nothing could be able to cover these scars.

The same scars that lay with her. Buried 6 feet below the ground.