Walk Quickly by Lauren Pillay

   
The streets are dark
“I shouldn’t have left so late”
Mums words streaming through my breath
The only sound I can hear tonight
Heavier with each step

Is there someone behind me?
Is It safe to look?
Keep walking swiftly
Pay no mind to the demons who play in the night  

The air drops to an ice
And I reach the long stretch to home
In the distance I can hear ships sounding
“I’m not supposed to walk by the harbour alone”
The street lights making music with the metal chains protecting us from falling in  

How many warnings does one need?  

Step by step I feel a warmth behind me
A certain familiar scent
Urging me to turn back
Look. it wo wen’t hurt to know what’s behind you  

“I’m not supposed to take my time”
Mum must be worried sick
My steps quicken
Although behind me,
I hear him “Come on now , Lily, it’s a good time back here”
The whispers get louder and louder
Demanding to be heard.  

My steps turn into hasty autumn leaves on a windy day
Closing my ears to the man behind
Will no one help the little girl running away?
“Come on ,Lily, it’s just one more time, no one will know”
He sings the same damn rhyme  

Chiming
Churning
Causing me to look  

But now that I’ve seen
It’s so close
He’s almost got me hooked  

I hear my keys sing songs about home
Run, Lily, run
You’ll be safe before you know  

Just before my door
He grabs my wrist
“I told you , Lily, I’m Instinct, I’m all you know and I’m all you miss.”

Author’s Note  

I enjoy writing poetry, as it’s a lot shorter and to the point. Walk Quickly was a piece I wrote while struggling to break free from habits, or instinct as seen in the poem. We all have a past or a few bad habits that keep knocking on our door. It’s your choice to let them in or keep them knocking

“Down under the night sky
I lay in wait
Praying to whoever will listen to me.
I’d fashioned my own cross,
Been crushed by its weight.
There’s no stronger message
Than dirt in your face” – Young Guns ‘Bones’

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