Staring down the end of an endless black barrel
While the fear stretches its way into every crevice of her soul
She knows just by the engorged pupil of his eye she is in a great peril
But even now, he is the one to make her feel whole

His bubbling anger becomes palpable;
Her now clammy hands begin to quiver
If he wanted, he would be unstoppable
But would he really pull that trigger?

She swallows.

The numbing sweat on her forehead meets the icy-chill of metal
And for the briefest of moments, she wishes herself dead
Maybe then, she thinks, this violence would settle
But weary eyes meet the devil's instead

For a moment, time feels frozen in its never-ending tracks
While the oxygen in her lungs rapidly escapes her
And as she waits for this world to fade to black
All she can smell on his breath is the liquor

Lips that once brought peace to the epitome of her soul
Now twisted into an unknown, feral grimace
With wide eyes, she watches as his mind begins to unravel
Bracing herself to bare witness

Muscles tightening
She can feel the rigidity settling in
A body that's relinquished fleeing or fighting
She grapples with the acceptance of letting him win

Is that her screaming?
Or is this all in her head?

-----

But then
The sun rises again

And that dreaded ending never arrives
Instead, in its place
She's tried to comprehend for quite some time
If her lips were sewn shut from the pain

Or disgrace

She never could quite tell which.


If I were to ask him
He'd tell me
She was the epitome of unhinged

I, however, find the rise and fall of her chest
Mesmerizing
Every syllable she breathes
Captivating
And the glistening shine of her eyes
Warming

As relief washes through her
When she locks teary eyes with mine
Silently

"Darling,"
- I tell her -
"There is no need to be quiet
Another second more"


© krystlereisler