A poem by Hayley Turner

The face of evil isn’t always transparent.
Evil isn’t the monster lurking under your bed.
Evil is the seemingly harmless allure hiding in plain sight.
Isn’t deception the most beautiful, yet lethal weapon?
A ticking time bomb?
Yeah, that’s a good fit.
When it finally explodes,
Your fate will be set.
The moment you’re invited in,
All logic is thrown out
For the bliss that resonates beneath your skin.
The empty promises gradually begin,
Everything from “just this once” to “never again.”
False charm mercilessly strings you along
While every ounce of control you had is long gone.
You’re soaring along Heaven,

Hell-bent on not getting lost.
But Beware.

High-strung delusion will never last.
The ecstasy turns toxic,
It vanishes abruptly fast.
The instant it leaves,
You’re left for dead;
To happily deteriorate in the darkest depths in your head.
The crash and burn will be enough, right?

Wrong.
Antagonistic desire always reappears,
Only to call your bluff.
Finally, you fall.

Funny.
Choosing to live ended your life after all.
The apathy conquered

The entirety of your essence.
Although you’re physically with us,
Never again will you be entirely present.
A masochistic disease

Accompanied by vehement distaste for a remedy,
Courtesy of the monster’s lovely deceit.