You watched her run <br />the bread <br />and butter knife <br />along <br /> <br />her inner arm <br />blunt blade <br />gesture only <br />enough to give <br /> <br />the nurses <br />something <br />to think about something <br />to make them <br /> <br />take the knife away <br />and sigh or curse <br />beneath breath <br />she walked about <br /> <br />the locked ward <br />in her light blue <br />nightgown <br />no shoes <br /> <br />or socks <br />or stockings <br />sometimes she’d search <br />through the men’s drawers <br /> <br />for razor blades <br />or something sharp <br />no doing <br />you said <br /> <br />I’ve looked already <br />she said <br />heard you tried <br />to string yourself up <br /> <br />in the john? <br />had those damn nurses <br />wetting themselves <br />and banging <br /> <br />on the locked door <br />and god <br />how they nigh <br />wet their panties <br /> <br />with it all <br />she said <br />almost managing <br />a small smile <br /> <br />bags <br />under her eyes <br />her pale skin <br />thin lips <br /> <br />sans lipstick <br />how do you think <br />it’ll go? <br />waiting <br /> <br />your next chance? <br />maybe <br />you said <br />she touched your hand <br /> <br />ran a finger <br />along the wrist <br />and scar <br />her gentle skin <br /> <br />setting fire <br />to tired flesh <br />then after tea <br />after the sandwiches <br /> <br />which Big Ted <br />brought up <br />from the canteen <br />watching <br /> <br />the sky <br />turn blue <br />to black <br />you knew <br /> <br />the dark was approaching <br />and the Black Dog back.<br /><br />Terry Collett<br /><br />http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/after-tea-and-sandwiches/
