Can you hear my voice?
Once strong and firm, but now it’s ever fading
Am I forever lost in the sound of a vicious gale,
being cast regretfully out and entering eagerly again
into the heaving chest of one that will always need it?

Can you hear my footsteps?
As I pace back and forth in my captivity
Locked deep in darkness where no chains are needed to bind me
First rapid
angry
anxious
Then soft
melancholy
tired of always trying with no avail

Can you hear my heartbeat?
A slow, steady pulse in my chest
Beating forever
monotonously
weakening after so many pitfalls

This heart of mine that can never be taken away
No matter how deep inside of you, that same heart beats
Broken
bruised
bludgeoned every so often
It’s closed inside where I lie, waiting
My footsteps are yours
Your breathing rushes and drones on in my ears
But your breathing is still mine
We share the same heart, closed ever so far away

I wish you could hear me still
The little innocent girl you locked away so many years ago
And threw away the key
Who you are is still hidden away
somewhere
I’m the proof

But I plead with you,
A young woman starting high school.
Just as afraid of judgment as I am of monsters in the closet

Just ignore all the background noises of life and listen.
Can you hear me?