I kick off my shoes and before I know it,

The tears roll and they’re unstoppable.

Each one says, “You’re not well.”

“You’re not enough.”

“You’re nothing.”

Sounds of sobs echo off the walls of this empty house.

Down the hall, in the first bedroom on the left.

Thats where life changed.

Walking into that room now,

I get chills up and down my body.

I choke on the stale air of lost hope.

I run out of that room and out the front door.

I run and run, barefoot and sobbing.

I run until I can no longer.

I run away from the demons.

As I slow, they speed up.

The unrelenting beasts catch me.

They knock me down and whisper,

“Remember. Remember that night.”

They hold me down and I scream out.

No one is there to rescue me.

They make a deep incision on my chest.

They grab my heart and rip it out.

My body shuts down, but I can still see.

That heart is beating. It is alive.

But a closer look reveals

Scars upon scars that spell out words.

Words like, “Unloved” and “Useless”

These are my last thoughts

As my eyes close

For the last time.