If theres one thing I’ve learned this semester its that physics rules everything around me.
Newtons first law
An object tends to remain motionless until an external force acts on it
You never forget your first time
And he would never forget it either
They laid there like two doves waiting to be released by a magician
His hands on her face
Her hands on his chest
it was simple just like Beyonce sang
Algebra involved the addition of a new variable which is why in this equationship she’d eventually end up an ex
But that’s farther down the time line
You see in that moment one minute could be infinite
But moments are always in motion and time always moves forward
Just like the way his hand grazed her cheek
A love tap to test her devotion to him
He wanted to see how easily he could bring her to her knees
Newtons 2nd Law
The vector sum of force is equivalent to the mass times acceleration
In physics we are taught that velocity over a distance is accelerstion so when the mass of his balled fist flew across her face he saw how easily force could be applied
As she came to, he came to know the sins of his father
Flashes of his mother crying in the bathroom instead of reading bedtime stories
her nose dripped blood as he poured out apologies,I love you’s and it’ll never happen again
But we all knew that was a lie
Like sex, violence is addicting and once you start you crave more
Fast forward three months, two broken bones and one hospital visit to discover that prime numbers are the most dangerous thing next to his hands
Each time he multiplied the blows to equal his frustration
She was his kevlar vest
Absorbing all the lemons and bullets that life threw at him
His bad days would show up on her skin
Newton’s 3rd law
When a force exerts itself on one body a second force of equal magnitude is simultaneously applied in the opposite direction
So instead of pushing him away, she brought him in
Nights sleeping back to back
Her wearing excessive makeup to hide black eyes
The lies she created to cover for her abusive lover
She was afraid
Afraid that the magnetic force that attracted his hands to her would be too great for her body to handle
Silence became her best friend
Keeping quiet, fearful that the wrong words would set him off
She sought an escape but gravity is a tough son of a bitch to break free from
And it somehow always had a way of coming back to you
But those who are beaten tend to bounce
She left without a trace
The force of his love diminished in an instant
And he was left to combat the friction of his sins alone
Because if an object is absent, there is no force to be applied
Newton had it all figured out
Two people divided by three laws
Leaving them each with one third of who they used to be
That’s the physics of an abusive relationship
~J. Varina
The Nuclear Cottage 