Story by Kathryn Santic

Kathryn Santic is a young writer from Griffith University. She belongs to a writing collective called Small Room. One of the members of this group, Chris Somerville has written for this blog before and has read at my workplace. I am a huge fan of his work and reading Kathryn's piece, I think these young writers are set to take over the world. Today I take a day off and welcome a new voice to furiousvaginas.

A Siren in the Night – Kathryn Santic

He lingers outside her window as if he simply happened there by chance.
As if in all the world, the stone steps of her building are nothing to him but a place to stand.
No more than two floors above, her body is restless, turning in her silky sheets.
And though the night and the city is warm, it is not the heat that stirs her sleep.

In the shadows near her building's door, a small light gently floats and flickers.
A light which rides the cigarette that rests in the spread of his strong fingers.
And as he takes a breath of poison, he lifts his hand toward the sky,
And sings of the sweet pleasures that she so frequently denies..

While he shapes each tempting word, his accent rises up two floors then falls,
So that only his deep voice remains, to seep through the cracks in her thin walls.
Brushing against her in her dreams, it strips her body bare,
Wrapping itself around her ankles, tangling in her hair.

Persuaded by his siren call, she shares his every whim.
Knowing that if he had his way, she would feel his hands upon her skin.
And while briefly dreaming of his kiss, she naively sees her thoughts as harmless,
Considering what might come of it, if she was to walk with him into the darkness.

Alone, she fights to block him out yet with no one to defend her,
She lets the smell of his brandless cigarette secretly befriend her.
And though she knows the gates that keep her safe from hell are thinning,
Her heart becomes a rhythm pushing her towards a new beginning.

And in the moment that control avoids her, when discretion and restraint forget her name,
His serenade undresses every part of her, undoing every promise she has ever made.
And as she lets her body rise, his voice lifts her from her sheets and from her life,
Carrying her down to the road below and out into the night.