Prey.
I See It Coming.
I think I've been prey for so long
I know the smell of being hunted.
The musk of curiosity wrapped in menace,
that odd, hot-and-cold interest—
like wolves circling with questions,
never full, never gone.
When they watch too closely,
I tense like thunder in dry air.
They come close, but not too close.
Interested, not invested.
Curious, not changed.
Dipping a toe into my water
as if spirit could be sampled
without swallowing the flood.
They fear becoming like me—
soiled, sanctified,
touched by the aftermath of being hunted
and still walking.
They keep their claws.
They want to know without knowing,
to hunt without consequence,
to linger at the edge
where nothing is demanded
but everything is taken.
But I know the smell of being hunted.
I am more spirit than soul now,
threadbare between planes,
called back only by breath and body.
And no, I am not angry.
That is too human.
I am livid and aloof,
too distant for rage,
too ancient to play amused.
So they dip in, dip out—
a game of predator's caution.
But I see it coming.
And I do not flinch.
About the Creator
Cathy (Christine Acheini) Ben-Ameh.
https://linktr.ee/cathybenameh
Passionate blogger sharing insights on lifestyle, music and personal growth.
⭐Shortlisted on The Creative Future Writers Awards 2025.
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More stories from Cathy (Christine Acheini) Ben-Ameh. and writers in Poets and other communities.
"Hear Me Out"
"Hear me out, what if we ran away together?" "Where do you want to go?" "Anywhere but here. We could move to a new city or to Canada, or we could disappear from society to live in the middle of the woods. Maybe a combination of two of those things would be good. What do you say?"
By Kay Husnick7 days ago in Fiction
Comments (5)
Captivating poem and well written.
Whoaaaa this was soooo powerful! Gosh I loved this so much!
🩷
Wow. You have such a powerful command of the language. Word choice is always exact and precise, and you convey such clear and vivid images with authentic emotional weight. I think there’s probably lots of ways to read this and can’t even guess if my interpretation is what you intended readers to pick up. But to me this sounds like someone identifying the patterns of a taker— someone who treats people like a resource for their own enjoyment or gain— and beginning to form a plan of resistance so they won’t be further taken advantage of.
Incredible story telling. I love this.