home alone

catefrances

she stands in the middle of an empty kitchen
the house is quiet
the children are at their da's
so there's no one to find her out
she curls her toes to stay warm
the linoleum cold against her bare feet
she's thinking just a little bit
just a little bit more should get it done
her pretty floral dress stained with whore's blood
she always thinks just a little bit more
she's sure that's all it'd take
red drops on her nice clean floor
the dog stratches on the back door
begging to be let in as if it knows
all the mournful looks it gives her
she sometimes thinks it does
is it sympathy or admonishment
or does the dog just want a bone
she's not quite sure which it is
but this time she wants to be alone
sometimes they find her staring into space
like yesterday elbow deep in dirty dishes
wondering if the hot soapy water would make it easier to drown
she heard her son laugh from the other room,
rinsed the last of the dishes and never found out.