A Loss

Trigger Warning for Sexual Assualt victims

you said you were scared to lose your tan,

I was scared to lose myself,

you were scared to lose the soft glow of pigmented skin,

I was scared to lose my soul,

You stroked your arm, hairs rising, rough and dry, a shadowed dark,

A colour of skin crafted by the burning sun, encapsulated in sweat and salt, 

this is what you were scared to lose,

I stroked my leg, pain shooting through me, rough and dry, a shadowed memory,

The colour of my soul, crafted by the stars and the moon, encapsulated in fear and sadness,

this is what i lost.