Girl On Fire

She awakens from her dark dreams to see the sun's light.
Yet she gets up and shuts the drapes.
She goes to wash herself with indifference,
Hoping to discard despised memories she has grown so fond of.
She dries off and dresses in the cloak of a sheep.
It's time to go to work and pretend to be all that she wishes to be.
Smiles, laughter, polite interactions.
But that couldn't be further from her reality.
She has mastered deception,
Even if she can't hide from her self.
Each breath, and each passing moment
Leads her away from truth and closer
To her soul's death.
She acts as though it affects her not,
but there is a fire within her that consumes her innards.
The slash and burn has created discord and chaos
From what once was virtue and innocence.
She looks no different, just as you and I might look.
She is of youth and beauty.
But behind her soulful glare lives a real ugliness.
Nobody knows the paining thoughts that lay in wait.
Nobody notices the demons that hang above her like a storm cloud.
Each day she returns home
She undresses and looks in the mirror, bare skinned.
Who would dare to love her?
She sees a scarified body and sunken in face.
Deteriorating every moment.
She tries to rest, but tears flow from her face like gasoline.
As the day closes and the sun sets
She is brought back to truth in all its simplicity.
Her tears cover her.
A spark-
She bursts into flames.