Wretched voice
Boxed so thin
Rubbed-raw noise
Sandpaper skin
Beaten crest
Lasts for years
Naked nest
November tears
The season’s stall
Before the laughs
The worst of all
The ugly path
A sun burned green
I waste away
While they all wait
For bright Friday.

Well hello again. Although we’ve clashed,
A new tune rises from the ash
Vermillion chords may paint this song
Ending it all; I hope I’m wrong

ᵗʰᵉ ᵐᵃᶰ ᶤᶰ ᵗʰᵉ ᵐᶤʳʳᵒʳ
ᶤ ᶳᵉᵉ ʰᶤᵐ ᶳᵒ ᶜˡᵉᵃʳ
ᵇᵘᵗ ʰᵉ ᵈᵒᵉᶳᶰ’ᵗ ᶳᵉᵉ ᵐᵉ
ᵇᵉᶜᵃᵘᶳᵉ ᶰᵒᵇᵒᵈʸ ᵈᵒᵉᶳˑ
ᵐʸ ᶳᶤᵈᵉ ʲᵘᶳᵗ ˡᶤᵏᵉ ᵃ ᵇᵉˡˡ
ʰᶤᶳ ᶜʳᵃᶜᵏᵉᵈ ᵃᶳ ᶤᵗ ᶠᵉˡˡ
ᵃᶰᵈ ʰᵉ’ᶳ ᵗᵘʳᶰᵉᵈ ᵃᶰʸʷᵃʸ
ᶳᵒ ʷʰᵃᵗ ᵈᵒᵉᶳ ᶤᵗ ᵐᵃᵗᵗᵉʳˀ
ʷʰʸ ᵈᵒ ᴵ ᶜᵃʳᵉ
ᶠᵒʳ ᵗʰᵉᶳᵉ ᵗʰᶤᶰ ᶳᵗʳᶤᶰᵍᶳ ʷᵉ ᶳʰᵃʳᵉˀ
ᵗʰᵉʸ ᵃˡˡ ᵗʰᶤᶰᵏ ᴵ’ᵐ ʲᵒᵏᶤᶰᵍ
ᶤ ᵍᵘᵉᶳᶳ ʰᵉ ᵈᵒᵉᶳ ᵗᵒᵒˑ
ᵃ ᶳᵐᶤˡᵉ ᵃᶰᵈ ᵃ ˡᶤᵉ
ᵗʰʳᵒᵘᵍʰ ᵒᵘʳ ᵗᵉᵉᵗʰ ᵃᶳ ʷᵉ ᶳᶤᵍʰ
ᵗʰᵃᵗ ᵈᵉᵃᵈ ˡᵒᵒᵏ ᶤᶰ ᵒᵘʳ ᵉʸᵉ
ᵗʰᵃᵗ’ᶳ ᵃˡˡ ᵗʰᵃᵗ’ᶳ ᵗʰᵉ ᶳᵃᵐᵉˑ
ᵗʰᵉʳᵉ’ᶳ ᶳᵒᵐᵉᵗʰᶤᶰᵍ ᵃᵇᵒᵘᵗ ʰᶤᵐ
ᶤ ᶜᵃᶰ’ᵗ ᶠᶤᶰᵈ ʷᶤᵗʰᵒᵘᵗ ʰᶤᵐ
ʰᵉ ʰᵃᶳ ʷʰᵃᵗ ᴵ ᵈᵒᶰ’ᵗ
ᶳᵒ ʷʰʸ’ᶳ ʰᵉ ˡᶤᵏᵉ ᵐᵉˀ
ᵒᶰᶜᵉ ᶠᶤᵉʳʸ ᶰᶤᶜᵉ
ᶰᵒʷ ᶜᵒˡᵈᵉʳ ᵗʰᵃᶰ ᶤᶜᵉ
ᶤ ᵍᵘᵉᶳᶳ ʰᵉ ʲᵘᶳᵗ ᶳᵃʷ ᵐᵉ
ᵃᶰᵈ ʰᵃᵗᵉᵈ ᶤᵗ ᵗᵒᵒ
ᶤ ʳᵉᵃˡˡʸ ᵈᵒ ᵗʳʸ
ᶤ ʲᵘᶳᵗ ʷᵃᶰᵗ ᵗᵒ ᵏᶰᵒʷ ʷʰʸ
‘ᶜᵃᵘᶳᵉ ᶤᵗ’ᶳ ᵇᶤᵍᵍᵉʳ ᵗʰᵃᶰ ʰᶤᵐ
ᵃᶰᵈ ᶤ ᶠᵉᵃʳ ᶤ ᵐᶤᵍʰᵗ ᵈʳᵒʷᶰ
ʰᵉ’ᶳ ᵍᵒᵗ ᶳᵒᵐᵉᵗʰᶤᶰᵍ ᶤ ˡᵃᶜᵏ
“ᵇʳᶤᶰᵍ ᶤᵗ ᵇᵃᶜᵏ˒ ᵇʳᶤᶰᵍ ᶤᵗ ᵇᵃᶜᵏ”
ᵖˡᵉᵃᶳᵉ ᵈᵒᶰ’ᵗ ᵗᵃᵏᵉ ᵗʰᶤᶳ ᶠʳᵒᵐ ᵐᵉ
ᶤ ᵍᵘᵉᶳᶳ ᶤ’ˡˡ ʲᵘᶳᵗ ᵍᵒ⁻

This might be paranoia
Please tell me that I’m wrong
But 27 days
Is already far too long
I told you that I loved you
You said you loved me more
We smile through our sutured eyes
And then you shut the door
I thought that I would lose again
You told me you would stay
Used to always be around
But now you’ve walked away
Now and then, you stop to talk
Enough to keep me on
But not so much to make me think
You’re not already gone.

Useless, I swore to use this, but I can’t do this
Turn around, sit down, I’ll tell you if the shoe fits
Rage fits, but I can’t scream
Burning fires in my dreams
It’s going well, or so it seems
But luck can change so fast—I mean,
Are you, are you not on board?
Care to duel? Words are my sword
It’s just too much; I can’t afford
The price of nice behavior toward
These people wearing masks
I’m not a person; I’m a task
If you don’t like me, I’ll just ask
Before I’m lost in the past

Enter in the beauty of this purity
Sincerity’s a rarity
Look in the mirror and I stare at me
Offer up a prayer for me
But the guilt overrides me
It eats up inside me
Bide my time ‘till I’m free
Like the inverse of Lyme disease
Fine by me, let me be
I’ll huff and puff in ecstasy
But words are nothing; words are free
Words sap up my energy
These colors aren’t that fun
Found myself overrun
Screams brighter than the sun
Coming from everyone
Yet they live their lives in white lies
With nothing else to stand by
No power helps their planes fly
And in the end they all die
Honesty’s a lonely word
Feeling under scrutiny
Heavy under blows;
is this a mutiny? Pardon me,
Because I was never the captain
I was never in charge
Life doesn’t have captions
It’s just blank index cards
Murphy’s law applies to spirits
Raise a glass for your ghost
Right when things are gone,
That’s when you miss them the most

Writing is my only hope
The pen’s blood-ink, it stains my throat
There’s no one there to fawn or dote
Surrounded by my poison moat
Isolated by the fray
Shackled wrists, I’m locked away
They stick around for just a day
Then turn and leave me where I lay
Draining; all I do is try
Sinking as they pass me by
Sometimes you just have to cry
But tears won’t come—I wonder why
My words are all I’ve got and less
For looks alone don’t pass the test
Hot, I’m not, just a hot mess
They like me, but don’t like me best