All cheekbone and fur,

polish and poise,

red velvet voice,

silk petal eyes—

and knows poetry 

as if he’s read

and written it for millennia.

Perhaps, he has.

Grace mixed with fierce will,

talons and quivering teeth.

Could shred any meat or man,

but prefers fresh baked bread and butter,

stew on damp, chilly days.

Hesitates at the word love,

every creased and moldered page 

echoes all that cannot be, 

all he believes cannot be.

Chest mad accordion and mouth mutilating

heart with each beloved recitation.

Voice steady, pulse erratic, veins simmering 

conjured evaluations, lived judgement—friends’ hidden grimaces.

He is scared. 

Scared of what he wants most—companionship.

Scared he will never have it even as he places

pressed roses in beloved poetry books, 

crystal around the neck of the woman 

he pretends not to need. 

He apologizes that his body is hideous. 

Not like a bruise or scar, 

nothing that could heal or be hidden.

He is all beast laced with too much man.

He is timid in love—fierce in protection.

With thanks to the 1980s “Beauty and the Beast” T.V. Show

Kim Malinowski is a lover of words. Her collection Home was published by Kelsay Books and her verse novel Clutching Narcissus was published by Twelve House Books. Her next verse novel, Phantom Reflection, is forthcoming 2022 from Silver Bow Publishing and following is her verse novel forthcoming from Nightingale & Sparrow. Her chapbook Death: A Love Story was published by Flutter Press. She was nominated for the 2022 Rhysling Award. She writes because the alternative is unthinkable.