Paint peeling, floors squeaking
Ceilings leaking in the kitchen or the closet.
It's a metaphor, she said
For these bodies we live in -
Like how I hate my thighs or how she hates her hair.
And I never asked them over
Because the dishes are dirty
And the peeling tiles in the bathroom
Make me feel sick when I shower.
Which is why, she says, I will
Never ask you inside of me
Because my paint is peeling and
My floors squeak when you get close.
By Meredith Hilton
