Those slender arms
pale fingers
covered in blood

Loud whisper of leaves
touched by the wind

Bare feet stir the ground
covered in crimson

Death comes at once
mad laughter the witness

love.
The knife rests on the counter.
Her freshly chopped hair
Feels so estranged.
A healing process
That seems to cut more than give.
Black eyeliner fresh to her skin;
Only worn after –
Never before.
Light flicks to her ear.
Her father’s gift of an earring
Ripped away.
A long ribbed scar
Of the letter “A” behind her ear
From a singed lighter burn.
The color was grey,
But it burned scarlet in her heart.
Impressionist choke lines ran across her throat
From her unwanted suitor.
Biting her lips with pain,
She felt a ruby red rawness.
Salvador Dali’s black lipstick
Twisted open to bleed
memories into mirrors.
Impulsive strokes of darkness filled the glass
With a diminished, backwards word
About a diminished and backwards girl,
She finished titling someone else’s art.
The gritty glass gleamed—
evol.

Broken window,
Damaged door,
Tempers rising,
Personal war,

Clenched fists,
Raised heart,
Eyes bulging,
A man apart,

Words fail,
Closed ears,
Red mist,
Own fears,

Locked door,
Black eye,
Help me,
She cries,

Angry man,
Local law,
He resists,
Once more,

Overnight,
Changed heart,
Apologetic,
New start,

Spilt glass,
Angry man,
Beaten wife,
Changed plan,

Courage found,
To walk away,
And escape,
His drunken ways,

New life,
No fear,
Only joy,
Draws tears,

The smoke does not bother me
any more than
the burning flesh
The scars will heal slowly
beneath my clothes
and I will turn my head
the other way
should anyone notice the ash on my skin
or the limp in my stride
because they are the only things you have left to control me
and I will heal
and I will move on
After all, like pain
you are only temporary

In your despair
you survive
wrapped in pain
no one could ever comprehend
and no one could save

You jumped
and yet here you are
bearing a gift
to ease the pain
of stranger sitting across from you
with tear stained eyes

You fill the world with light unknown to you
brighter than any darkness
and you do not mind
that thanks comes in the form
of an endless stream of tears

Your story
Your name
If only I knew
before it was too late
I would have treasured
every hour spent
in the cold and quiet
hospital room

And now
You fill my mind
With every crevice
you live on
and I live
for you

How foolish
that my reason to live
another day
comes from a small gift
from the stranger sitting across from me
with blood on her wrists
and a warm forgiving smile
on her lips

Who would ever know
that all the thanks I have
would belong to the golden heart
of a broken stranger

you're the difference in between of
what i think and what i say
you're the only one who's capable
to take my breath away
you're the shadow i remember
in the nights i stay awake
you're the last remaining victim
of the promises you make
you're the arrogant admirer
of your own self-righteous good
you're the shallow little dreamer
drowning in your lifeless blood
you're the hopeless overthinker
who can't hold a conversation
you're the absence in the thought
behind your insecure frustration
you're the joke behind the laughter
you're the end and yet the start
you're the one who i chase after
you're the thief who stole my heart.

Why do we always fight for those that wouldn’t care if you drop down dead in a puddle?
Why do we pour our hearts out to those that don’t do the same back?
Why do we smile when that person smiles? The person that laid down with others when it was only supposed to be you?
Why do we love those that don’t love you in the same way as you do?
Why do we suffer in pain when those do something that we knew was going to happen?
Is that the harsh reality of life? Love?
Why do we feel that we can mend our hearts with those that are heartless?
Why haven’t I moved on?
Why do we always end up being a victim of a foolish heart?