POEM — Taboo

do you

know

late

at night

when

all

is so still

even the

leaves

sleep

and

the wind

takes a

breather

when

the quiet

creeps

into

the dark

spaces

and

solitude

is

spelled

with a

capital

S

I crawl

forth

from my

bed

fingers

raw

from digging

up

from my

self-imposed

grave

of

missing you

and I

stalk

the night

in

search

of your

scent

your essence

your soul

and

nothing

quells

my crave

no wine

no

water

only you

I call out

in despair

my cries

falling

on

deaf ears

and

still I

seek

you

my one

true

love

my only

my

heart

and

I know

I am

doomed

to forever

roam

these streets

in search

of you

incapable

of touching

another

as when my

fingers

traced the

lines

etched into

your skin

but

I care

not

and I

know

you

will never

love

me as

you do

she

that your

words

are not

promises

they

are just

sounds

coming together

uttered in

the moment

meaningless

no matter

how much

meaning

I read

into them

but I

care

not

and I know

when

death

calls me

home

nothing will

keep

me from

you

and again

I shall

prowl

city sidewalks

and

alleys

in search

of you

my one

true

love

my only

my

heart

still incapable

of accepting

your

rejection

of us

still

willing

to play

the fool

in the face

of your

perfection

still

yearning

for the sweet

of your

breath

and the

soft of

your sigh

forever

shamed

by the

fact

when I

wasn’t

looking and

my guard

was down

love snuck

up

from behind

and

made me

her fool

*

Madhuri Pavamani is a writer of dark and erotic fiction and poetry. Her upcoming novel ‘Dutch’ has been called ‘unapologetically smutty’ and ‘dark and sexy and bloody’ — and you bet we’re looking forward to reading it! Madhuri can be found at madhuripavamani.com or you can follow her on Twitter @MadhuriWrites