Valley Summer

[Ramona]

Just a poem inspired by valley summers and Stephen King's "Rose Madder," though I am nowhere near his level of talent.

-----

"This city's made us crazy and we must get out."

-"Must Get Out," by Maroon 5

She unsticks a sweat sweet tendril
of hair from her forehead.
Bleached from the sun.
Genuine.

She wipes beads of sweat away
from her chest.
Fingers trailing on brown freckles.
Sunglasses darkening her vision.
Lemonade light
filters through her glass
onto her unread paperback.

She pushes back
against the cheap lounge chair
next to the artificially blue water of the pool.
Her legs rub against each other.
Sandals contrasting with her casual manner.
The sun reflects off of her khaki shorts.
They come up a little when she bends.

She stares at the water of the pool
and wonders what it would take
to drown herself.
Wonders what it would take to stay down,
unconscious,
until water flows into her lungs.
Her eyes open and unseeing.

He stares at her legs
and wonders what it would take
to hurt her.
Wonder what it would take to twist her arms,
hear her scream,
until he hears the bones creak and then snap.
Her mouth open and her face twisted.

[Queen of Rain]

Wow I love the way the brutalýty comes creepýng.. very well wrýtten!!

[Ramona]

Thanks. Do you think it was in any way flagged for earlier on? I was trying not to, 'cause i wanted it to kind of just surface.

[Robin]

The only criticism I have for this is that it didn't make me really think of Rose Madder, except maybe in the sort of mellow urgency of it. It reminds me more of the other piece of inspiration.

The last two stanzas were just like "whoa dude where did that come from?" Maybe a little bit more transition would work here.

[Ramona]

Yeah, that was kind of the feeling I wanted, just popping out of nowhere. And on the Rose Madder thing, it was just the idea of violence in calm thought.