Trapped

-Ashavari

Each day, I wake up tired and burnt.

Darkness under my eyes, anxiety sits on my chest as fear crawls into my bones, the skin burns.

A daughter, a student, a friend in demand - a body to judge and a mind to command.

It doesn't end there, it just began.

The girls on my screen are too pretty, too sweet while I'm told "you're not in demand"

Fix your skirt, tie your hair, don't sit too close, or they might hear. Who might hear? Let them hear.

Sit your way, talk a little loud. Live life the way YOU want.

"But the girls on my screen-" the girls on your screen are unreal.

scars are real,

pores are real,

The hair on your arms is real.

You're real.

But you're too tired,

they call it "strength" like it's praise but I've been strong for too many days.

marks over minds, grades over grief,

attention as affection.

We learnt all the wrong things.

We learn to hate our own reflection.

Our worth depends on likes and mentions.

We were taught that beauty is a competition.

A woman's life revolves around men's validation.

It's not just men, it's women too. All my classmates, they're the villains too.

Teenage isn't bad, teenagers are.

Young minds are frustrated to say it all.