coming undone

polyethylene clothing with perforated seams
latch on tight, an uninvited straitjacket

scissoring the child’s skin,
transforming her into this outfit, one size too small

gloved hands attempt surgical removal of the charcoal turtleneck,
but the first impatient tug hits a snag—

undressing her skin, uncovering
the fragile personality that cowers beneath

her frantic eyes and their wild tennis match observe

the exposed muscles in the mirror

they spot a loose thread, hiding near the base of her neck,
begging for those trembling fingers as they reach

and pull ever so gingerly but to no avail

it all unravels, her loosened torso unveils a fractured ribcage

torn veins rain blood, alarmingly crimson

droplets colliding into the carpet beside her still-beating heart

she’s a mass of decaying skin shivering,
body heat fading

one thought echoes, resonates—

the meticulous nitpicking of the eternally destructive, self-sabotaging perfectionist