faded memories are crystallized by a late night six pack
still blurry from the tears i just can’t fight
he lurks in the shadows of my fear
the lingering odor of his sweat and my blood
i fall into the bathtub filled with ice
trying to sink into the freezing shallows
he wraps his noose around me and
keeps me warm for now
i cannot distinguish the smell on my hands
or the taste on my lips as he slips away
behind a closed, locked door
mourning a dead dog or an empty bottle
he stumbles toward me and he has been crying
for what will happen next