Water

by Megan Apostol, Canyon Crest Academy '23

"Eternitarian" by Angelina Ochoa, Canyon Crest Academy '22

When I’m in the shower

The water digs its claws into my skin

Stripping my clothes away

It leaves my bare body slashed

But the water keeps coming

Burning my raw skin

In the morning

When I wash my face

Your breath runs out the facet

Pursing its lips

Slipping out a firm

Shh

When I come home,

I soak in the bathtub

With my head as a lily pad

My body, its attaching root

Essential element drenched

The water feels heavy

A burly being

Running up and down my body with

Thorny fingers

My mind lilts to the pulse of the grind

I go for a swim to get fresh air

Submerging myself into the water

Eyes open

There he is

Seeping into my nose

Stretching and knotting my neck

Water inundates me

Why didn’t it kill me the first time

But eradicated my life with one shot

Now, the only thing that holds me

Against jumping

And splashing straight into hell

Is the cry I’ll hear in

9 months