alter ego
1: smile softly, nod your head
laugh quietly with creased eyes
agree with words you don’t
legs crossed, hands in your lap
you are being watched and
the audience loves this angle
2: rake your fingernails down skin
running blood of self-inflicted
is almost as deep as these bruises
hair wild and unkempt
you must never stop running
or they will forever follow you
1: talk of small table conversation
pleasing to their ears
in a voice that was never yours
these words that you memorized
what the audience hopes to hear
they are always listening
2: bash your head on whitewash
to right the thoughts that
never escape this endless mind
rants of emotions unknown
you must scream of this psychosis
or they will drown you out
1: dance into societal acceptance
these unwritten rules of “good”
are your mantra
they must not know that
this cardboard box does not
fit you as perfectly as it seems
2: twist and contort into
a rewritten tale of control
you are here to crumble this world
into a place of truth
you must break this double-sided mirror
and show the world
what they do not hope to see
