Fourteen days
"Bitch!"
"Slut!"
She hears it all.
She tries to ignore it,
but the words are knives dipped in acid,
tearing her apart.

Twelve days
Mom calls her worthless.
Says she'll never be anything.
Just another welfare queen.
A whore working the streets.
Maybe Mom's right...

Ten days
She drags the razor over her forearm
and watches the blood drip.
It's the only way to cope.
The only way to be in control.

Eight days
Dad sees a bad grade.
Beats her until she passes out.
She can't hide all the bruises.
People will ask questions again.
Not if she can help it.

Six days
In the bathroom
she is cornered.
The assailants cut her hair
and punch her repeatedly.
They take pictures
and laugh on the way out.

Four days
The girls who attacked her
put the pictures on the web.
People find it funny.
They demand more action.
Additional threats are made towards her.

Two days
A teacher pulls her aside.
Says he understands teenhood is hard,
but if she doesn't try harder,
she will fail the grade.
That is not an option.

The day
In one hand a bottle of pills,
the other a knife.
She stands on a stool
with her neck tied to
the closet rack.
She gulps down the pills.
Slits her wrists.
Jump off the stool.
Gone forever.