A Nice Man

Simon smelled divine, tonight.
The scent must have been
A mix of sandalwood
And some scent
I just couldn’t identify.

Unfortunately,
I didn’t get the opportunity
To savour the various notes
As Simon was raping me.

He’s such a nice man,
My mother would say
As we would pass him
In the street,
Just after he gave us
A polite nod and a warm smile.

To end
Her glowing endorsement of him,
I accepted Simon’s invitation
To dinner.

Over salmon and lamb,
We discussed everything
Under the moon,
And I honestly thought
That Simon had potential.

It was just as the date
Was winding to an end,
As we stood in my doorway,
Simon overwhelmed me.
The wind was knocked out of me
And reality faded away.

I woke up with
Him on top of me.
My dress was torn
And I was so exposed
With Simon grinding,
Pumping, sweating,
Face contorting with a mixture
Of pain and ecstasy.
All I felt was pain.

The pain caused by
His weight pressing me
Deeper into the floor boards.

The pain caused by
His invading my body,
Ripping me in two
With each thrust.

The pain that emanated
From where he struck me.

Before long,
He was done
And only at that moment
Did he realize that
I had came to.
“You liked that,
Didn’t you?
I know I enjoyed it.”

He got dressed,
Complementing me
On how nice my apartment was.
He especially liked
The hardwood floors.
He giggled at his own joke.

I waited for the “nice man”
To exit my apartment,
Then called the police,
Then my mother,
Who sobbed outside
As the doctor collected evidence
For the rape kit.

As news spread
Of Simon’s arrest,
Women came forth
Claiming that he had raped them.
They were ashamed at the time,
They were party girls
And Simon was such a nice man.
Everyone would have
Believed whatever he said.

A year and a half later,
Simon was sentenced
For raping me, and
The police were investigating
The other claims of rape.

From that night forward,
I am wary of any man
Who is described as
A nice man.