Parasite

Photo by Olya Prutskova

I hate it when people use my name.

They do not have the right, they do not feel the shame.

My brain is a bomb, and, baby, it ticks.

Maybe I’m poisoned by my politics.

Yet, I hate silence more than I should,

I chase it with a knife around my neighborhood.

The anxiety flashes through me in sharp crashes,

And acidic tears get stuck to my lashes.

I hate it when people try to make me cry.

Haven’t they heard?

I left my soul out there to die.

My brain is a parasite, always sucking me dry,

Chasing after substances that make me high.

-Jackie

The Girl

Photo by mikoto.raw Photographer

I stand three inches from the noose,

One peace to gain, one heart to lose.

Still, I am the happiest person I know,

The girl smiling at you from the front row.

I stand just three steps from breaking down.

Oh, these voices are violently loud.

Still, no one seems to notice me falling.

I am the girl that found her calling.

I sway over the trench one, two, three times.

It hopes that one day I call it mine.

Still, they clap as I fly towards the end,

The girl that never called life her friend.

-Jackie

Spirit

Photo by Gustavo Peres

She’s chasing her demons with whiskey,

That’s all the spirit she needs.

She loves them till the glass turns misty,

Then she opens up and bleeds.

Don’t turn away, she just cannot help it.

Baby, when it rains, it pours.

Her eyes turn from wells to empty buckets,

And the walls turn into doors.

But don’t you mind it, she’s almost done.

Watch as the new sun rises.

The face of the day kills all her fun,

It buries her in demises.

-Jackie

Substances

Photo by mododeolhar

I gave you my mind, but you needed more.

I gave up my life, you said “make it four”.

You slit open my eyes,

Bruised my thighs.

Now I walk the streets and I agonize.

I gave you my stories, it was not enough.

You needed someone who fills your cup.

You bled me dry,

Left me sick and high.

It is time to sing the last lullaby.

-Jackie

Reputation

Photo by Octoptimist

When the white fangs pierced your skin, you knew you chose wrong.

When my pride lost its throne, you realized I have known all along.

So, take me back to the forest, put your blade into my shaking back,

Show them that you are the ice queen, only seeing white or black.

Oh, how I have been wronged, but I never uttered a single phrase.

You told me to hold my horses, then put hot flame in my face.

A year ago, I would have told them you do not deserve the reputation,

But those times are long gone, and they have killed my patience.

-Jackie

Fall From Grace

Photo by Octoptimist

The time has come to pick up the sharp pieces and reinvent myself.

I have to choose a better mask before the dogs are sent after my scent.

It’s time to practice smiling in the mirror, practice laughing at jokes.

The people I used to call friends, they all hope I finally choke.

Yes, it’s time to drink champagne as my life collapses around me.

They will send rescuers to the scene who will claim they cannot find me.

It’s time to spin at the edge of a steep cliff and pretend I do not care.

I wish they knew how cruel it was to treat my heart as a dare.

-Jackie

Unanswered

Photo by Navid Sohrabi

They combed the old forests searching for you,

They stared at my arms, looking for a faint bruise.

I could feel the rage, could feel the daggers landing.

How could all this wrath come from something romantic?

They cried for seven nights while counting my breaths.

Remind me, honey, was it something I said?

I saw them stealing my sanity like it was a drug.

Tell me – do you love this grave that we dug?

-Jackie

They Took My Kingdom

Photo by Ali Karimiboroujeni

Good things never come from fragile egos and weak backbones.

God, I look back and wish that I could rule this kingdom alone.

They charmed me with their split tongues, made me into a zero.

Now my palace burns with hateful chants and self-proclaimed heroes.

I wish I knew how to make it right, but all I seem to do is break things.

My teeth have bitten way too many skins for me to boost ratings,

And they know that once the world finds out I will be just a wreck.

Good things never come out of people that capitalize on regret.

-Jackie

Circus Clown

Photo by Hebert Santo

My feet tend to take me to peculiar places,

They never once take me back home.

And my friends ask me to slow my pace,

So, I always have to walk alone.

My feet take me down to dark castles,

They stomp on ancient graves.

People always treat me like I do not matter,

So, I only have myself to save.

My feet walk through mud and clear water,

They get cut open on rocks.

I wish I could finally call my father,

But he has my number blocked.

My feet tend to take me to scary towns,

They take me where I belong.

The locals think I am a circus clown,

And, honey, they are not wrong.

-Jackie

Darkest Hours

Photo by Ferdinand Studio

You swept me off my feet like flood tends to do with towns,

Then you kept me under the water, hoping I would drown.

Baby, I am not your demon to burn or tear into pieces.

You can tell god whatever you please, save your reasons.

You think I do not notice the purple wounds that you leave,

You think I do not hear how you curse when I sleep.

Still, I have heard every syllable, felt every single punch,

But you are convinced you have long killed my raging hunch.

Do not doubt for even one second – I will shoot to kill.

I will scrape you off my brain, slay you with white pills,

And your pouring rain will form rainbows under my sun.

Yes, you swept me off my feet, but you never held the gun.

-Jackie