Nothing stops him.
He sneaks into my bed at night while
I am asleep and wraps his arms
around me tight.

When I wake there is no relief.
He only clings to me tighter when I try to break free.

But this is the only form of intimacy
I know.
Like an old friend,
I succumb to the power of emptiness.  

I want so desperately to feel
something more.
How can I when he promises
sweet release if I follow him
into the darkness?

It’s only in my suffering
that I am reminded that I am
still painfully
and willingly
alive.