The key I’d received still fit the house

But it no longer felt like home

The joy was buried in the backyard

Alongside my dog

My hope fell from my body

Like the leaves during autumn

Away from the old tall oak tree

The tree was rooted outside the kitchen window

The window was foggy

Clouded by the resentment

I walked up the stairs wishing they led to the past

The past where we all got along

The past where no one wanted to die

The past where no one walked on eggshells

My heart is as cracked as the path beneath my feet