Chapter 51
‘I’m not sure how I can follow that,’ Ruby mumbled into the mic when she got to the small gold platform. The crowd chuckled good-humouredly, their spirits high from the generous flow of do-gooding and champagne.
Ruby cleared her throat. ‘My name is Ruby Tongue, and this poem is called “Fuck you till you love me”, and it’s dedicated to every woman who ever thought that the way to her own heart was through a man’s bed.’
She cleared her throat again.
‘It all starts in the flesh of mother’s bed
But you were lain there by
A man, and maybe a promise of love
You are Love made.
But the making of you is not complete
And never again can it be by man
You forge yourself through eyes that are not yours
Moulded in the casts of
Others, for those who gaze and lick their lips
You are unshaped
But for the contours of their vile desires
Inside of which you might find brief relief
Or to put it more fucking simply …’
Ruby paused at the cheering of the crowd. Heather could be heard the loudest, but she was sure she heard Opal’s voice too.
‘A man might have brought
you to be born into this wretched earth
But he cannot
guide you to the love that blossoms you full
Only you, the art, and the gem of a woman can.’
Scanning the audience, Ruby caught Opal’s eye. It was as sincere as Ruby could get to a thank you.