The color of your shoulders became
a kaleidoscope of dragon’s breath,
a leviathan through my hermitage.
I never knew if your laughter started
as a lazy smile swimming over your face,
or if it bubbled up like sea foam.
If you moved through the world
as a stormy ocean or a lapping wave.
If your hands were as rough as sand,
or as smooth as your poetry.
You were always the fairy tale ending
that my arms could never hold
as you coiled and twisted
like envy through my heart.
Exploded through my chest
like a held breath, as I drowned
in a whirlpool of your words.
Words you took away,
leaving a thousand tiny
cuts as seconds of silence.
You were always my fairy tale ending
until I disappeared into your
mouth, consumed by loneliness.
The damned on the very edge
of judgement. Shivering,
waiting for just one more word –
absolution
July 30, 2023