I didn’t really want you to touch me but I let you
It seemed polite.
Talk to me.
All my longings are floating
in front of your eyes. I want you
to have laser surgery to tell my needs
from my neuroses like pieces
of seaweed and washed
abalone. Maybe if you kissed
the back of my knee and whispered
I’d gleam more. Am I unlike
a hyena that eats til the blood’s
pouring down my cheeks? You act
like a mud runner but all I want
is for you to wash my feet
in sandalwood, tell me my opinions change
your worldview, stroke my face
as if it were your daughter’s. If you want
to do one last lap I won’t
say no. What spurs you on
to have sex with more
and more women?
Sophia Nicholson is a poet and songwriter from Hertfordshire. She is a member of Covent Garden Stanza and practises yoga.