I am not going to let
What they say and do get to me
Today
What I do and what I wear
Is up to me, I’m free?
I can wear what I want to
You’re not gonna stop me, are you?
It’s my fundamental right
And it’s so hot outside
I think I’ll wear a tank top and torn jeans
Wait, we’re going out?
I can’t wear the torn jeans out there
Why not? Just coz people will stare?
To hell with them and their unwanted eyes
Following me
I wear my summer dress
Go out on the streets
Oh, so naive of the reality...
Ugh, why’s he staring
with that smirk on his face?
I don’t understand
Is my dress too short?
Is my bra strap so intriguing
That it makes him trace
My body
Lips to legs
I can’t take this
I need a hiding place
His stare makes me feel dirty
It shouldn’t.
So why am I letting it
Make me feel bad about my outfit?
Great, now I feel bad about feeling bad!
I’m so clumsy
I dropped my phone on the ground
Oh no I can’t bend down to pick it
Without them seeing my panty
Fear-bound
So I hold my dress tight
Close to my thighs
Take a quick look around
To scan for anyone
Waiting
For a wardrobe malfunction
It’s a world dysfunction
I pick up the phone quicker than lightning
Phew, that was close
Thank goodness no one saw anything
But maybe, that guy in the corner
With his hungry eyes did, who knows?
My comfort isn’t mine anymore
I let their stares get to me once more
Ignore
They say
But how can I?
My comfortable clothes don’t make me feel at ease
Not because they’re too tight or too loose or too long or too short or too transparent
But because they make guys want to stare at me
Please
Let. Me. Be.
With the disappointment of yet another day
Of letting the gaze define
How I feel about what I wear and how I walk
And how I sit and how I laugh and how I talk
I go back home knowing
I’ll wake up tomorrow
Disappointment washed away
My heart filled with determination
To not let the stares get to me yet another day
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