pAPERDOLL

Evvi, 12th - France
​
you stitched me from the prettiest pieces,
only the ones you wanted to see--
the way I laugh when I’m tired,
the softness in my apologies,
the parts of me that looked easy to love.

you never saw the jagged hours,
the shaking hands,
the dark corners I didn’t know how to light.
you built a girl out of daydreams
and asked her to be me.

I stayed still for you.
folded into shapes you liked.
shrunk myself quieter, prettier,
more patient, less real--
until even I forgot what I sounded like.

you loved the paper doll you made.
you never asked if I was bleeding under the seams.