Coerced Poem by Paige DeRogatis

Clinging to the doorknob, I fall upon my knees

Begging for a comfort, to hush my constant pleas.

Once invited with such warmth. I’m now kicked into the dust

And I’m reaching for assurance from a liar I still trust.

I came to you broken, coddled in your arms

You gave me fleeting pleasures, and superficial charms

Spell-bound in your entrapment, I gave you my “consent”

To treat me with such cruelty, and plot my quick descent

Into a rock encrusted bottom, not a pillow by my side

You’ve stripped away the comfort that you’ve once amply supplied.

Yet I still yearn for your company, despite the pain you bring

I’m addicted to your fire and the piercing of your sting