quick, shaking movements
the wind whips, once more, over
the crowns of the trees

follow me again
into the woods, roots twisted
follow me where?
crooked thoughts
nowhere

spidery lines
etch the pages
of the ill-used book
tattered pages
dusty and
rough against
its long forgotten
leather covers

disjointed words and
tongue that are numb to icy
chattering teeth, cold
against the tender
roof of a bleakly set mouth
lips raw, tired as
the incessant maw of the
arctic tempest bites

the trees sprout up, scraggly
across the marsh, murky
a ravenous mold, infesting

the trees sprout up, scraggly
across the marsh, murky
a ravenous mold, infesting

junebugs flit
against skeletal cracked windows
desperate for
the promise of light

rusty linoleum
scratches
against your palms
murky water
keeps flowing
unescapable

cherry blossom boy
strawberry red hair curls wildly
blueberry eyes gleam

your eyelashes flutter
against my curved spine
quietly, like snowflakes