Paige Prince Stewart: Favorites

Jun 2012 Paige Prince Stewart

Ashe L Bennett

I don't remember, any more,
The exact shape of your hands
As I held them in mine,
Caressed them,
Memorized the length of your fingers,
The depth of your calluses.

I don't remember, any more,
Exactly your height, how much
Taller than me
You were, where
My head rested on your chest
When you held me tightly close.

I don't remember, any more,
Your scent, when we lay together
Creating our own
Magic rhythm,
Matching our heartbeats as we
Touched the sky, together.

I don't remember, any more,
The sound of your voice, calling
My name as though
It were a song
Within itself, a precious treasure
You valued with all your being.

And I don't remember, any more,
The color of your eyes, the shape
Of your lips,
Only...
How your eyes crinkled at the corners
And your laugh, as you told me,

"I love you."

Copyright by Ash L. Bennett, 2011

Jun 2012 Paige Prince Stewart

Begging

Jun 2012 Paige Prince Stewart

Annabel Lee

Begging

Stumbling for words, the way I normally stumble over rocks
My tongue halts awkwardly before jumping to life only to twist itself into knots
All the things I mean to say swirl about in my head
Waiting for my tongue to stop its epileptic dance and release them
Suddenly they start to spill forth
And an avalanche of words that buries us with their heaviness
Suffocating us with weight words never had before that moment
Our eyes meet in our combined struggle for breath
Please tell me you felt that spark
But your face remains tight
Angry
And I know I’m messing it all up
Again
But I can’t stand the silence
The not talking that nearly killed me
So I open my dumb mouth again
And let another hurricane of words pour out
As if we’re not battered enough
Finally, the torrent ends
And we sit in unsatisfied silence
Ignoring the pool of words I’ve managed to make
My arms ache to reach out
To tug a gentle smile from you once more
But you stand to follow the draining flood out the door
Ready, as always, to leave me
Please stay

Jun 2012 Paige Prince Stewart

As Long As She's Wanted

Jun 2012 Paige Prince Stewart

Annabel Lee

As Long As She's Wanted

She’ll take it all and smile
Pretending she’s not hurt
Thanking god that at least she’s wanted
She knows his kisses don’t mean much
But still, she’ll take what she can get
Because even when it hurts it’s better than being alone
He says ‘I love you’
But means ‘you’ll do’
And still it’s enough for her
As long as she’s wanted
Even when he forgets every anniversary
And her birthday too
Even thought they fight every night
She’ll stay
As long as she’s wanted
She’s cries and he just watches
She’s constantly in pain
But he’s blind to it all
Still, she’ll take it all and smile
As long as she’s wanted

Jun 2012 Paige Prince Stewart

Heaven's the Other Way, Dear

Jun 2012 Paige Prince Stewart

Annabel Lee

Heaven's the Other Way, Dear

Do you reside here too?
Amidst the dancing flames that lick your soles
But leave your soul cold?
In the thick of the desperate wails and tortured cries
Where no one lives, but everyone dies?
Between the tired used up husks of those who once were
And the fresh bleeding harrowed condemned?
Where the sharp silver hurts, even as it heals?
Where ice burns just as hot as fire?
Among the tears of the broken and the ******
Of the beggars and refuse?
In the darkness deeper than any night?
Surrounded by pain and suffering so sharp it stabs
Into you until you can’t feel anymore?
Could you possibly live here too?
No, angels don’t stroll through hell

Jun 2012 Paige Prince Stewart

While watching lighting strike a tree outside my window

Jun 2012 Paige Prince Stewart

N23

While watching lighting strike a tree outside my window

"I want to push you so far away
that the look in your eyes
no longer causes me to question
your love
         and yet
I want to hold you
            to me
tightly,
fiercely,
until we are both somehow lost
in the way that you make me feel."
                                                               she says to me.

firm fingertips tracing the curve of my stomach.
soft lips kissing the swell of my hips.

(I say nothing.)

— The End —