Fingertips tracing ink lines across your skin
Once nimble now fumbling
Tingling anticipation sharp like papercuts
I keep tracing
Papercuts becoming gashes
Peeling my skin back to the bone
Still tracing
Hands worn down to remnants and bones
You’re already gone
My skin worn out in patches
Pulled taught to my frame
Bones like white stone
Holding my limbs together
Making beauty out of betrayal
Stretching a minute into a lifetime
Bony fingers rapping against a marble chest
Checking for signs of life inside
Crocodile tears on rose-less cheeks
Dark eyes rimmed in bitterness
A wanting mind left alone
How many layers must peel away
Before you see one you want.