Poetry by Melody Wang

             ​yrjö jyske CC



CW: sexual assault, feelings of suicide
It emerged from


the murky depths & I walked beside it --
               a beast wearing a man's wry smile 
               hiding its intent to ensnare me
 
my unwavering voice echoed freely then
              the night air was cool upon my skin
              the moon shone placid above us
 
              in the darkness              it plotted and lured me
              onto a high place           frenzied in its desire
              to scorch my being       with perverse heat
 
when it overpowered me, the darkness fawned 
               and flourished. Decay bound me, my own 
               body complicit in its paralysis: a teratoma   
 
enlarged, forgotten. Silenced by what lurked 
 
                beneath              my path: 
                no longer            visible to me
                yet I felt              nothing
 
echoes from this cold chamber
                palpitated with pungent dread — 
                at times, I wanted breath to cease
 
days later, I emerged as if from a fog
                a creature hardly recognizable
                even to myself
 
out of the stillness
                strength returned to me
                and I welcomed it like an old friend
 
the beast took from me
                that which was never meant for it
                left me trembling in the abyss 
 
unbeknownst to it
                that which it thought it had destroyed --
                I am no longer bound to
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Melody Wang currently resides in sunny Southern California with her dear husband. In her free time, she dabbles in piano composition and also enjoys hiking, baking, and playing with her dogs. She is a reader for Sledgehammer Lit and can be found on Twitter @MelodyOfMusings.

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