A Fake Smile

[rowens]

Remember when you were a kid
And you were told if you kept making a face
It might stick that way?
That’s her, all right…

With a fake smile,
A smile so constant and bright
You get the wrong idea every time,
And end up looking like a jerk.

No matter how crude and upset you get,
All she ever says is:
“Hi, how are you?!”
“Where have you been?!”
“Hey, stranger, why haven’t you been around to see me lately?”
And everything with that smile, that same vicious smile
That gives you just enough of what you need
To give her anything she wants.

She takes, like a melting snowman in heat;
And gives of herself, all that one could expect
From a well-fed vampire on the rag.
But you’ve come to accept that.

For what she gives, you love her.
And when it’s someone else…
—You want to be the one that drives the stake!
The one stake
That you and her
So often carved together.

And when it’s done;
And you have a chip on your shoulder,
The weight of a chip off but one of her nails,
That drags a part of you to Hell beside her:

You leave a little note on the table by her bed
That reads: “Remember me when you smile!
For you have the most beautiful smile,
And I will always remember you by the light of it.”
And you mean it…
Because, after all, it’s true.

[arbil_poieo]

Hey Rowens,
It's true, women can be vicious.

"From a well-fed vampire on the rag."----ouch but funny

I read this a few times and absorbed every word of it, theres just a lot to like about this from start to finish.
"She takes, like a melting snowman in heat"---I enjoyed that metaphor

It almost read like an advertisement with side effects. This is worth reading more than a few times.

[rowens]

It's nice of you to say you like it. I kind of like this one myself.

[arbil_poieo]

What I like most about it is at first it seemed like he just liked the challenge but in the last stanza it really showed his love without little expectations, just her smile.

[rowens]

A challenge is usually attractive. All the more so when you actually have a deeper feeling to go with it. And we can hope that as a woman like this gets older, she might finally decide to settle down, and stay with one man. But in the meantime, you have to keep playing the childish games, or she'll get bored and let you fade.

[Arriedo]

i definitely enjoyed but i agree women are evil but oh god we need em but the flow of this was perfect and the concept was on point. one i will read again and again.

[earlymorningnoises]

This speaks to me in a very pointed way. To Arriedo: People are horrible in general. This poem transcends gender in my opinion and targets self absorption and a reaction to it.

[newsclippings]

'ey. Dere ain't nuthin wrong with us women folk.

[rowens]

No. Nothing wrong with women. The more difficult the better.

[totaltrainwreck]

I'm not even sure where to begin on this one. It's ridiculously well done. I love the inner struggle, he knows that she's only playing childish games and he plays along, but he truly is in love with her. I feel like its just such a relate able concept for any reader. He should know better than to feel that way about someone like her, but even then, he can't help his feelings for her. Much respect to you, Rowens

[rowens]

Thanks. And I never resent a woman, no matter how much she makes me deal with. I might get mad, but that's helpful. I've made entire novels and stories simply because I wanted to be able to stick an episode or piece of dialogue inspired by a woman I know in somewhere. And not out of spite either. But out of joy. And, yeah, love.

[Smiffy]

And everything with that smile, that same vicious smile
That gives you just enough of what you need
To give her anything she wants.

I think I know her, ouch! ouch ! ouch!........and then some
women , can't live with em' can't live without em' ,life's a bitch then you marry one