trust me he says
my demons can play nice
but i could see
snakes slithering under his skin
and i tried to look past that
and see the stars in his eyes
and it would burn when we touched
leaving scars all over
and i was drinking in
memories and hope
night time sounds so loud
when you're alone
sleeping next to someone
you'll never know
and he would laugh
about hateful things
and make me cringe
because the sweet words
were wrapped in lies
leaving me so empty
it's like playing with matches
when you're standing in the ashes

you can't love a woman who writes
maybe you think you'd like to try
but it's really almost impossible
it takes so much time
and people are impatient
but if she writes
then she has dreams
she envisions a life
you may not be able to imagine
she can take her words
& spread them across the night
and make something beautiful
out of almost nothing
you might think that you'd like this
someone who can find the hope
in all that's broken
but really it's so... exhausting
and you'll expect to be some elaborate
part of the book of Her
but if you can't live up to it
please don't try because people
get hurt in the process
and nothing hurts her more
than others suffering
don't use that against her
just let her be who she needs to be
if you want to love her know
that there's a lot of emotion there
a lot of inner struggle
that has nothing to do with you
don't make it about you
because it rarely ever is
sometimes she's gonna be sad
or frustrated or lonely
because that's who she is
but maybe it's best
not to love a woman who writes

my life was literally
falling down all around me
and you were my friend
the only friend i really had
and i talked to you all hours of the night
about what went wrong in life
and why people turn out the way they do
i found comfort in your voice
words that seemed to soothe me
give me that peace i so desperately needed
five years of not being "allowed" to be emotional
to be thoughtful or loving
because it was "inconvienent"
and i was too much and so tiresome
and i knew that and i tried to change
i tried to fit the needs of others
and it left me so empty
walking around like a shell, a ghost
of who i used to be
and i hurt inside all the time
but you gave me that brief glimpse of hope
and you whispered sweet words
that became empty promises
and that part hurt, i'm not going to lie
it bothered me so much because
really it was pointless
and it never should've happened
because we can't just be friends
i was never wired that way
and i'm sorry for you
because i could've been
the best friend you ever had

Ernest Hemingway once said
write hard and clear about what hurts
what he didn't say was that sometimes
it'll feel like needles against your skin
like swallowing ashes
and your heart is racing
he didn't tell you that
sometimes writing
about what hurts isn't always so clear
you can write it out
you can mix your words
make them sound beautiful even if they are
so full of pain and shame
so you can write hard and clear
about what hurts
but just know that the after effects
aren't always as beautiful
& poetic as you'd like
sometimes it leaves a burn
a scar in places no one sees

sometimes there's no pain in goodbye
and maybe i love you is the sweetest lie
maybe hope is all we're left to hold
all that glitters isn't gold
sometimes we lose ourselves bit by bit
looking for something to make the pieces fit
and we don't wanna feel empty or alone
when words and memories cut to the bone
sometimes you know when enough is enough
and there's no shame in giving up
on anything that makes you blind
leads you astray, sets you behind
makes your soul hurt, your heart ache
but nothing in this life is a mistake
lessons, lessons, how they change
and life is wonderful, life is strange
even in the moments of struggle and grief
hold on fast to that belief
that you are always so much more
than you give yourself credit for
sometimes there's no pain in goodbye
and maybe i love you is the sweetest lie
but we're all fools
stumbling blindly

you should have
someone who falls in love
with the sound of your voice
at 3 am
when the world is asleep
and you're restless
& someone who watches
the moonlight fall across your face
and can feel the stars from
your fingers
you should have
someone who listens to your dreams
and your thoughts
who wants to hear everything
you've ever wanted
someone who will see the bruises
on your soul
the scars on your heart
but tells you you're beautiful anyway
& you should have
someone who wants your happiness
and to play a part in that
someone who doesn't give up so easily
in a world where everyone
gives up all the time
and you should have
all your wishes come true
and someone sweet
to share them with

she fell in love
with old buildings
abandoned houses
windows busted out
missing doors and
peeling paint
places that seemed
haunted and lost
there was a sweet sadness
in overgrown yards
like part of the world was forgotten
it moved her
because she coul see
how beautiful they once were
how memories used to fill
all the hallways and rooms
rooms now boarded shut
falling apart
pieces, pieces everywhere
and she fell in love
with the way the sun hit
and she could almost feel
where life used to be there
she kinda thinks that people
are like those houses