we are
star-crossed;
cursed to walk
divergent paths--
yet we linger at
a crossroads,
fingers threaded
together like
fate's strings,
hoping (in vain)
that hell
would be
kind.

Today,
you and I wallow
in yesterday's
ruination
But my tears
will hold no worth
come tomorrow.

Ever tender, ever sweet
The honest admission.
Oh, the quiet flutter of the heart.
A shortness of breath,
A strain in her chest---
Could he hear it?
She hoped he could.

What could've been
What should've been
What we were.

You were something
Yet I was nothing
At least, to you.

His lips taste like sorrow.
Bitter. Sweet. And everything in between.

He won’t tell of the hell he’s been through
But you can taste it when he kisses you.

He’ll smile.
He’ll pretend he’s fine.
He’ll tell you it’s nothing.
But you know he’s lying.

You know he’s lying right through his teeth.
But you taste the truth when he kisses you.

You taste the sorrow.
You taste the pain.
You taste the war within him.

You wonder if he knows that you understand.

You look into her eyes
And you see the stars.
A whole galaxy untold.
Her heart, the sun--
Radiant, warm, good.
From her lips, a whisper of truth:
a simple "I love you."
And within you stirs all the glory
And splendor of the unknown.

Stealing kisses on borrowed time
Oh darling, you are not mine.

Your war-torn hands are frigid to the touch
Like a ghost hidden in the cloak of dusk.

I'm searching, searching
Yet you are nowhere to be found--

In your empty love I drown.