a shaky tattoo

there is something about being insecure that colors the lines of everything around you;
blinking on the surface of your skin like a shaky tattoo,
your stutters and rewords and repeats and second tries
and you take your twisted tongue and apologize
but it’s too late; you’ve talked yourself into a corner and you’re alone
backing into the walls converging into your flesh and bones

and so with time you just decide to be quiet, to be careful, to be cautious
though when you bite your tongue, the blood pooling in your stomach makes you nauseous