the tree outside our window was in bloom

big brother was on the bed playing Mario

and the flowers just started to peak out of the grass

like they were afraid of the sunlight

and the beams of yellow and white fell into our window

creating a glare on big brothers game screen

you see we shared a room

much to his disdain 

we were stuck in this 10 x 10 

door locked 

in hope that we couldn’t hear

big brother turned up the game

i plugged my ears

to look out the window

but i remember the slam

the door slammed so hard

it shook

it shook the whole house 

my window seemed like a stream

like a water fall 

that came and went whenever it pleased

it almost seemed normal

just the three of us

a trifecta of broken hearts

branded by dead beat dads

and no apology 

you see the tree eventually started to loose leaves

big brother eventually didn’t cry himself to sleep

we eventually moved on

and much to your disdain i quit begging for you

i quit wanting you

i quit looking out the window

i quit letting the sunlight bounce around our room

just like you quit us

so i closed the curtains 

i shut the door and locked it

locked it and no one can find the key

the key is lost somewhere “in your love for us”

it’s funny how that works.

you know

big brother is going to college now

the trifecta of broken hearts is healed now

dead beat dads don’t really teach big brothers on how to be good people

but i guess we’ve really defied every bet 

you had against us.