starving as he was,
the snow could not hinder
the undying rage
beneath his fur, his skin—
it was boiling,
as if to erupt,
to evolve into
something entirely
different.

wailing, he kept walking
despite the weight of it all,
shredding every piece
of humanity ever
afforded to him.
it was then
that he realized
animals were never
concerned with rights
or wrongs—
only what was
in their hearts,
or their craving.

he kept his fangs
showing, his claws
sharp enough to maim,
to turn his next friend
into a victim—
just so he can go back,
rest, and live
another god-awful day.

you walk this earth
with nothing but pain
and yet you blossom
so beautifully—
a lotus in winter,
defying all odds
and all of nature.

you are more than
who you think you are.
a king without a throne,
a lion without a pride—
you can be either
without anything else
to your name.

i am not who birthed me,
and i will not apologize
for this space i consume.

i am not their mistake
and i will not mistake
kinship for love
any longer.

i will own myself
once and for all.

when the sand fills,
and the hands of time
caresses you into submission,
freedom feels a little too
overrated a concept.

we are puppets
dangling at the side
of a building, waiting to
be taken off the clothesline
or by the wind—
both of which we know
we'd gladly take just
to end the discussion.

i am a firm believer
in whispers.
small talk isn't
too small for me.
i hold my words too close
to my chest i barely breathe
without them.

so now, as my eyes fail me,
i wish time will be so
kind enough to tell me
how all of this ends.
i do not want to suffer
more than i already do—
and i do not need
another lesson on how to
survive in this
god-forsaken life.
yet everyone feels
compelled to
give me one anyway.

smiles are usually free—
yet yours seem distant
and a little too much for
my taste.

the warmth you gave—
i wanted to fan it to flames but
i couldn't.

i guess we should
be careful of what we say.
we could end up
not telling
what we truly mean.

before dawn breaks,
before the sun strikes
the ground,
let me savor you.

we are nothing with clothes on
and everything without.
i believe the heaven
they want to find
pales in comparison
to the heaven i found
inside yo—

please, don't let the
bedbugs bite.

You see,
in a world of
dos and don'ts,
you're the only reason
I need
to conquer anything.

Cigarettes are a close second.

I found the moon
somewhere far from here.
But I thought she
knows me the same way
she did before—
now she's nothing but
a dream
I'm hoping to forget.
A forbidden love
from a forbidden island—
oh, I hope the sun rises
before the night
takes me away again.

I miss you.