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The Girl You Love to Hate
- Red Hen Press
- Chapter
- Additional Information
28 The Girl You Love to Hate The girl you love to hate Strides into the restaurant, Confident and self-assured. She’s quite tall and lanky With hair halfway down her back And she’s wearing no makeup. The white cotton summer dress She’s selected for the afternoon Clings to her tan skin and rests Three inches above her knees. There’s a table already set for her In the middle of the room— And you wonder who will join her. From the corner of your eye You spy the girl you love to hate, As her long delicate fingers Grasp a glass of water And raise it to curved lips You swear must be collagen injected, Although you know it’s not the case; But this is exactly what You would tell your best friend If she were there with you now— And she would certainly agree. One by one, heads turn Towards the girl you love to hate. Men, women and children Measure her perfect face And stillness fills the room. A man enters the restaurant In search of the girl who sighs The moment she sees him Drop into the chair beside her. 29 Soon his hand slips between hers, The clatter of dishes resumes And people regain the voices They traded for beauty’s silence. Amid the afternoon glow You lower your eyes When you feel shame’s stain Crawl slowly over you. But the vision of the girl Refuses to vanish entirely— And you realize, again, Just how much you hate her. ...