We were misfits
the neglected *******
of a backwards world
that rejected us
not because we were sick
demented or dangerous
but because we didn't prescribe
to a preconceived notion
of what a functioning citizen was.

Not rotten enough to spoil
behind the bars of a prison
just competent enough
to work menial jobs
and drown our sorrows
at the corner pub.

We swallowed this hard truth
the same way we drank our shots
with no chaser
and at times it burnt
maybe even made us tear up
but we never let it beat us
(too strong for that)

We were beautiful
resilient beasts
that could carry the weight
of the world upon our shoulders
and it was heavy
but we would tell ourselves
"doesn't every world need an atlas?"
so we went on holding up the sky
when no one asked it of us.

I no longer feel alone
For when my feet are submerged in the ocean
I feel the pulse of millions of beings
As I expel a breath from my lungs
I know it will be inhaled by someone like me
Someone who once felt alone
And has now shared life with a stranger.

I feel the line
an unseen connection
it pulls me closer
   into the unknown
There is an emptiness
   in which the line gets wound
      the closer I get
         the fuller I become
If I step back
   away from you
      I unravel
         the hole grows
Someday I will find you
   and you will never leave my side
      the longing hole in me
         will be gone
            all wound up

Wandering in the dark
Slowly falling apart
The thoughts weighing heavily;
I am alone,
Alone in the cold.
"How did I get here?"
"Why is it me?"
I just wanted to be free.
Free from the thoughts,
The voices,
The blades-
To which, I had been enslaved.
"Will I ever be free?"