Reputation

An allegorical poem written for the prompt : "Imagine you are being followed".

Wherever I went, I was shadowed.
She followed me
Three steps behind.

I was terrified of my stalker,
Desperate to shrug her off.
I avoided the well-trodden roads,
Darted into unexpected clearings.
But perhaps she could read my mind
For she knew exactly where I’d go
And the thorns did not seem to hurt her
Though they drew blood from my aching feet.
She followed me, now
Two steps behind.

I dashed into the crush of the city-
Hoping I’d be swallowed in anonymity,
Praying I could lose her in the crowd-
But the great waves of people parted
To let her through.
Mesmerized by this striking siren,
They cheered her on,
Showered her with salacious chatter,
As she followed me –
One step behind.

Finally, she caught up
She grasped my wrist, snapped on the handcuffs
And threw the key into the crowd.
Now, she leads me
And I follow.
She is like the more beautiful twin-
She catches their eyes first,
She preens in the attention,
While I am the afterthought,
The shadow that no one remembers.

8 May 2011