heat bathes my body
i'm a short, skinny
16-year-old in pigtails and bows.
i see a stranger dressed in a suit and tie.
i smile and he grins back.
i move on and pay for a ticket
to enter a cooled theater.
the movie credits are rolling
as i take a seat.
i feel the jerking motion of a chair
next to mine.
but i'm staring at stars on the screen.
maybe 20 minutes pass and i feel
a stroking on my thigh.
his body lurches as my razor nails
dig into his hand.
his face turns toward me,
illuminated by the light
from the reel room.
i jump up and rush
away from him,
the man
who smiled at me
in the sun.
Copyright 2007 by the Tipton Poetry Journal.
All rights remain the exclusive property of the individual poet and may not be used without their permission.