Jasmina Kuenzli
Damsel

I wasn’t afraid
I dove down deeper than anyone had ever gone,
Took your hand from where you sat at the bottom of the pool,
Hauled you up and laid my head on your chest,
Whispering the words you needed to take your first breath again.
I knew exactly what to say.

I was the heroine who already knew the script.
I knew what the kiss was, and how to wield it,
and I had no doubt of my power
I would bring those gold-flecked eyes to life again,
You would feel everything that is the lake on a winter’s day,
A deeper blue than my eyes in the right light

My hair still stands on end when I wake from dreaming of you,
And these aches weren’t there a year ago,
When I told you that I would wait for you,
And it still wasn’t enough for you—
To take a deep breath
And open your eyes.

I’ve written a thousand incantations,
and with any one of them,
I can round a corner,
or step into that convenience store,
around the aisle,
and I’ll see you,
your face wretched and alive,
with the final lock hanging open from your lips.

But it doesn’t matter
Because every time you look at me
I go see-through