the rings are black
around your eye
please

tell me what you want me to do
should i hold you close?
let you cry?

should i push you out the door?
should i push you to make that call?

your cheeks are swelling
pink and purple
with abuse
scratches mark your pale arm

"i can't call, i can't call just yet...i'm not ready"

i let you whisper your words
with breathe so faint it smells sweet
your lips don't move
tissue filling with blood

as you change your sweater
the strings quartet along the hem
the little things seem huge
the little things seem definite

"we'll wait until you're ready, but you will call soon"
my words come out forced, heavy
i want to hold you again
hold you so close, protect you from that man
you don't want to be protected

you want to run back to him

i'll lock the doors
cuff you to a chair
take the battery out of your car
let your keys suddenly disappear
before i'll willingly let you go

your sweater, it comes off around your head
your head hunched to your chest
i see the bruises
the extent of the torment, the tirade
the rage

i hate him