Not an inch is safe,

cut up from

sharp fingernails;

black and blue bruises

run over skin.

Every sight of flesh

judged and jeered

Whether thinned to bone

or curvy like ocean waves.

Oh, how it cries; cries

to be left alone

from the painful pinches

and the inch-deep cuts.

How tired it is

from taking the beatings

of society’s stupidity

as it tries protecting the beautiful

gem lurking beneath.

Jordan Huxtable (she/her) is a senior creative writing major who enjoys writing her novels/poetry, collecting Funko Pops, and watching horror movies and her two favorite TV shows, Stranger Things and Golden Girls.