I built my walls

with careful hands

Stacked stone on stone

made quiet plans

I gave my heart

to passing ghosts

To lovers, liars, friends

I’d host

They took their turns

they broke, they bent

Left echoes

where their words were spent.

I stitched my wounds

with threads of lies

Pretending love

would never die

The mirror

it shows a stranger’s face

A hollow stare

an empty space

I count the names

I’ve learned to miss

Each one a scar

a venomous kiss

And now

as shadows start to rust

I ask the dark

who’s left to trust?