Deviance in the Dark
by Shannia Bernal
Enclosed in little space, I see
darkness staring at my eyes;
my reflection gloriously glaring
from someone else.
The foreboding feeling
of dying from being entrapped
comes close in each breath
we shared. To be encircled
and strangled by the figs of new
wonder, I am your host and you
are my parasite. I permit
you to sip more of me, leisurely,
until my existence quiets your restless
roots. You will live beside
my presence with a prayer
of the future. Because you
are the parasite and I
am the host, you will never wither.
You will desperately cling
to this dark room which holds
no falsehood
just to hear the small
shifting sound, the soft gentle
breathing, the warmth of skin briefly
touching. Here,
exposed in our defenseless state,
perhaps, I must admit to the cries
of my own—of the inexplicable
thirst finally satiated
by a voice
speaking tenderly. In the sick
twisted way of enumerating utility
and finding preys to consume, maybe
I am not your host, and you are not my parasite.
Let time flow and we’ll see
if colors would look
as clear and as familiar
as the first breath in the morning.
darkness staring at my eyes;
my reflection gloriously glaring
from someone else.
The foreboding feeling
of dying from being entrapped
comes close in each breath
we shared. To be encircled
and strangled by the figs of new
wonder, I am your host and you
are my parasite. I permit
you to sip more of me, leisurely,
until my existence quiets your restless
roots. You will live beside
my presence with a prayer
of the future. Because you
are the parasite and I
am the host, you will never wither.
You will desperately cling
to this dark room which holds
no falsehood
just to hear the small
shifting sound, the soft gentle
breathing, the warmth of skin briefly
touching. Here,
exposed in our defenseless state,
perhaps, I must admit to the cries
of my own—of the inexplicable
thirst finally satiated
by a voice
speaking tenderly. In the sick
twisted way of enumerating utility
and finding preys to consume, maybe
I am not your host, and you are not my parasite.
Let time flow and we’ll see
if colors would look
as clear and as familiar
as the first breath in the morning.
Shannia Bernal is a graduate of Literature in the University of Santo Tomas, and she currently works as a content editor. Her poems have been published in Dapitan and Asterlit. She enjoys daydreaming in sunny afternoons and brewing ideas at night. At this moment, she wonders if it's possible to make a living without feeling less alive. Thus, she realized that she dreams to live a passionate purpose-driven life.