they say "i love you" and then shove a table into my gut,42Please respect copyright.PENANAPTSbEMS9D1
all in the same breath with no hesitation.42Please respect copyright.PENANAVeiaPfxspq
they apologize two hours twenty-three minutes later42Please respect copyright.PENANAzryxcb4EPa
but no "sorry" will ever hide the bruising.42Please respect copyright.PENANAbh6IMrZaNr
42Please respect copyright.PENANAYhdbMRAvGd
they repeat the same mantra over and over,42Please respect copyright.PENANAI8LFgCsXxO
sounding like a broken record of "sorry"s and "i love you"s42Please respect copyright.PENANAidPR0xmAqA
but in the end they still withhold dinner,42Please respect copyright.PENANAvv3mDWSzCw
dangling it above my head like a cat does to a mouse.42Please respect copyright.PENANA4oUDtq0vKj
42Please respect copyright.PENANAfireiPHw8L
and they wonder, two years later, why i scarf down meals42Please respect copyright.PENANAD0cry1PGQQ
with all the grace of a rabid animal who hasn't seen food in months.42Please respect copyright.PENANA4RWsAaXgoC
and they wonder why my hands shake and i flinch42Please respect copyright.PENANA8rx5JYkEwW
every time they shout, shoulders hunched in like i can fold myself over.42Please respect copyright.PENANAgD5hZTbDB0
42Please respect copyright.PENANAMSswEC2zzy
bruises litter my skin, part of it from running into walls and desks,42Please respect copyright.PENANAwLZPAwOqsF
but part of it is from running from bitter faces and angry hands.42Please respect copyright.PENANANg3qa5l1sq
my skin is marked, iron-tipped nails ripping into flesh for relief42Please respect copyright.PENANAebnGfGOrIy
and blaming the left behind scratches on the dog.42Please respect copyright.PENANAMPluL3SZpO
42Please respect copyright.PENANAwdBHtAvEtZ
they call it "dermatillomania" and "picker's syndrome",42Please respect copyright.PENANA4eufKUyVAu
said it was all mental and to just stop42Please respect copyright.PENANARtBhGNAyap
but it was habits formed out of pent up42Please respect copyright.PENANA5bO7zlfPcR
frustration and stress and sheer disbelief at the disregard they had for their own daughter's life.42Please respect copyright.PENANAI4zz9qfP2E
42Please respect copyright.PENANAEB8nXz1yVk
they said it was all in my mind,42Please respect copyright.PENANAuNhHaJKZa6
the anxiety, the stress.42Please respect copyright.PENANAbsS1G5OqK5
that i had a happy, loving family42Please respect copyright.PENANAxjnYivebBB
and i was perfectly fine.42Please respect copyright.PENANAurLSIyWMbr
42Please respect copyright.PENANAShtndKhxF8
i'm not.42Please respect copyright.PENANAzSrzA4fcJd
i'm drowning in my own blood42Please respect copyright.PENANASRl4n33hgR
and choking on my tongue42Please respect copyright.PENANAb59s07QS1O
when i try to say so.42Please respect copyright.PENANAspQk2cJ70I
42Please respect copyright.PENANAfdOuTPBXkc
...42Please respect copyright.PENANAiX4yIlB1vi
42Please respect copyright.PENANA7IR1IzUuE7
(it's all in my mind.42Please respect copyright.PENANAq8C6secdrC
every last drop of anxiety,42Please respect copyright.PENANAiyHvR9ifPi
i have a happy, loving family.42Please respect copyright.PENANAXmQu1BvCkD
i'm perfectly fine.)42Please respect copyright.PENANAFHL3HBw35h