Your traces used to dance
open flame on my skin
scorching the path it took
leaving me with nothing
but open wounds

your eyes used to roam
knives through my flesh
cutting right to the bone
sparing none
not even innocence of eyes

your words used to fill emptiness
relentless tides crashing on rib cages
drowning my lungs
your words were cigarettes
I, a smokers raspy breath

pain, it demands undivided attention
it burns, cuts, and kills
it scars
or rather you scarred
now you touch, roam, speak
and all I am is numb
morphine dripping in my veins

so I ask,
is it better to dance in the fire
or watch as the burns fade away?