Bobette Bryan's Poetry
Flapper Beads
You saw me strutting
down the street one sunny afternoon,
coppery hair sashaying against my hips.
I was 13, but I looked 18.
A much older woman lived
in that perfect, young body.
I wore long, shiny flapper beads,
and I felt beautiful in them.
You beckoned me to the porch, and said:
“Come here, you with all your beads and oddities,
wearing crazy things that no one else would wear.”
Your finger leapt out and traced a path
along those cold beads
and suddenly they felt hot.
Before I could say a word,
you took my arm and led me inside,
up a flight of creaky stairs to your bed.
I could barely gasp before
your body fell upon mine.
Your long blonde hair rained down upon me,
and covered me like the soft wings of an angel.
And when your lips met mine,
my whole body quaked.
No doubt, you were as beautiful
as a fairy tale prince.
Women swooned in your wake,
kissed your feet,
and then tried to kill themselves
when it was all over.
So I knew, when I met the zealousness
of your lips with my own
and relished the delicious press
of your body into mine.
And there I remained with you,
nevertheless,
until the twilight came and went,
bodies and lips embraced...
but never our souls.
And you would not attempt to go further--
not with me.
I was w...a...y off limits.
You knew that if you did,
heaven and hell would rise up around you
and pound you deep into the ground.
Ah, but I would keep your secret.
You...dear old family friend.
You...nearly a brother of mine.
You...whom I knew well.
And you, silly fool, should have known that I’d
never let you into my heart.
Unlike those who’d passed your way before,
I could never love you.
because I knew who you were,
knew you were a fairytale prince
and that your love would never be real.
Even at that young age,
I knew I needed something real and enduring.
When I got home that night,
I took off those flapper beads
and never wore them again.
© 2009 Bobette Bryan
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