Horror Poetry - Sand Man by Katy Bennett

Sand Man

I watch you lying on the beach,

We are alone together with the endless sea.

I stroke your damp hair beneath a moonlit sky.

Your tattoo of a serpent points out to sea,

As if yearning to escape beneath the black waves.

You are perfection. My obsession.

My strength and my weakness.

I sprinkle a handful of sand over your torso.

They sit like crumbs in your navel,

Your gentle rise and fall of breath

Sheds the grains back onto the beach.

I sprinkle more sand over you.

They fall in your hair and cling to the wet strands.

You are mine. I won’t let anyone else have you.

I bury you up to your knees.

I made you, shaped you, gave you a reason to live

But you tried to leave me while the stars watched.

I work tirelessly. Afraid

The sleeping pills will lose their effect.

I kiss your serpent one last time

And then smother it in yellow grains.

I caress your stomach and pecks

Before saying goodbye.

There will be no pain for you,

I hold enough for both of us.

Only your head is visible now,

I remember how your lips moved over my body.

How I drowned in your blue eyes.

Angry, I throw sand at your sleeping lids.

Soon my work is done,

I have said my final goodbye.

I love you, my sand man.