Princess

I know a princess and I’m scared of her

She wears frilly dresses and has emeralds for eyes

She plays piano and picks flowers in the forest nearby

And she’s kind with a pure, shiny soul

Yet I'm still afraid of her 

When she lays her head against my shoulder she seems to come apart

She becomes a silky pink ribbon and ties herself around my body

And tells me 

“You can’t be me, so why live?”

I hold her tightly every night

Singing her lullabies and telling her stories from times before mine

She kisses me and hugs me in a way no one has ever before 

She makes me flowers

And excels in everything she does for me

Maybe even more

I have full control of what this princess does 

And she, in truth, can never beat me

But every day when her eyes become heavy

And she plants her head on my shoulders or my knees or my chest

She becomes that ribbon again

Twirling up my legs 

Past my torso

Until I am encapsulated up to my ear 

She says once again

“You can’t be me, so why live?”

Her words don’t affect my body, I’m completely still

But suddenly I feel my heart and brain grow eyes that suddenly flow out streams of  tears

And right when I feel that she transforms back into a human

And acts like none of it ever happened 

Holding me tight like I would hold her

And I try to push her off

But the more I try

The more she tries to get at me 

And crawls into my skin