he was crushed brittle
with counterfeit kiss;
and buried underneath dead promises.
worms of crawling pain
dug holes any deeper
within the much more broken machine.

blizzard came and went not;
winds blew colder
numbing scars off;
he'd been the ocean
kissed by glaciers and icebergs
any sunlight couldn't melt
to water once more.

he'd awaken breathing the ghost he'd been before.