You wanted to pick
and prod me apart.
poke a hole in my
chest and find the very
essence of childhood
left stranded
in the black crevice
of lungs and muscles.
Baby blue eyes with
salty oceans
flowing and ebbing
against my eyelid shores.
You wanted to scrape
the scab off the healing wound
and watch me
fade into the darkness-
shoulder to shoulder
with the skeletons in
my closet.
Shutting the door behind
you, whispering,
“Things will be better in the morning.”
You vanish.
the gaping abyss
left on my breastbone
and the shadows
cradling me
like a frightened babe.