standing

on the edge

my toes

melting over the gap

the ground

crumbling over the ledge

trickling down

into the abyss

like i wish i could

it would be so easy

to take that step

to feel the nothingness

beneath my feet

the whistling

in my ears

as i fall

wind whipping

at my hair

teasing my heart

plummeting

with every beat

every breath

pushing me closer

i can't.

instead of

stepping forward

i retreat

fleeing

from my fears

to live

another day

(but what good is life if you live in fear?)

Her name is Challenge

the walks and parades

locks my heart in a cage

She’s fierce by default

always fuming for a sport

that is deadly

and ends with blood

How can I

be her choice

of the so many that are strong

she sought a weakling, that, I am

I have no cunning like her lords

buttered with silver and chariots

My lips wept green

from her kiss

stuck in a phantom

of her doing

I succumbed to self pity

and dirty greed

took the lord’s money

to leave my queen

even when I knew

she ruled the nine kingdoms

From her castle

I hear her scream

chanting my name

that ends with an hiss

“Cowardice come back to me”

She walks

the road most traveled;

she boasts that she

has never lost a fight-

when in fact

she’s never fought one.

she knows

what is right

what path

she should follow

but day by day

she inches away

Cowardice is a man...

He's the man that harrasses a girl/woman,

Who can't take no,

Who touches them without consent,

And is the reason women/girls have to be so careful.

Cowardice is a man...

He's the man who rapes a little girl,

Who threatens a woman when she says no,

Who strips young ones of their innocence,

And leaves trauma to scar those he meets.

Cowardice is a man...

He's the man who hits his children for being human,

Who beats his wife/girlfriend for a small mistake,

Who almost/does kill the innocents who trusted him,

And smiles when he thinks of the pain he has caused.

Cowardice is a man...

He's the man who hurts those around him,

Who traumatizes those who trust him,

Who scars the ones who wanted his love in return for their own,

And feels no remorse when he sees the damage he's caused.

Cowardice is a human...

Cowardice is not one who is afraid of the dark,

But rather,

One who is afraid to face the consequence and change their ways,

Cowardice is the one who refuses to stop spreading pain.

She has never quite loved me. Yet I badgered her, forced myself upon her until she gave up time and time again.

We formed this love-hate relationship no one could understand. She hated how she caved in, but I loved how I could always control a part of her. She loved me for being her comfort-zone, but I hated that she’s always wanted to venture out.

I hold her back by the wrists, wrestle with her heart and play with her mind. I grab her by the throat and breathe down her neck. I am the fear that makes her choose flight instead of fight. I am the difference between right and wrong. I am a force to be reckoned with, a formidable opponent she can never quite match up to. I am the seed of doubt in her soul, the only one able to stop her in times of crisis.

I am Cowardice.

Lonely in this cell,

this cell that I cannot leave.

The key is in my hand,

but I hide it away from my heart,

my mind, and my soul.

I carefully

edge away from the door,

as something passes by

that I've never seen before.

It holds them, my heart, in it's hands,

but I can't leave,

not that anyone understands!

I am in the back of my cell,

my ears plugged for the screaming.

To put their lives over mine?

Quit your dreaming.

I'm shaking,

I'm crying,

I'm dying

and lying,

but, hey, for now, I live.

it’s sitting on the asphalt road

hoping the next car wouldn’t brake in time

it’s unlocking your window in the middle of the night

wishing you had the courage

and wishing that 6 floors was high enough

because you weren't enough

but that one thing that hurts the most

is loving her

i wish i had that courage

three years ago

- deathetix

I am the tap-tap-tapping of nails against your leg

as you walk away from your dreams,

because it’s easier to give up than to risk failure.

I am the clap-clap-clapping of your hands

as you praise those who have betrayed you

because you don’t want to rock the boat.

I am the pound-pound-pounding of your head

as it strikes the concrete yet again,

because mama always said bullies leave you alone when you don’t fight back

...so you don’t fight back.

you don’t fight at all.

He sits in the corner of any room you enter, with a black bowler hat pulled over his eyes and grey overcoat drooping down to the floorboards. He holds a cane in his hand.

Careful, he’ll call you over if you come too close. He doesn’t like being alone, for it is much easier to sleep through a wedding if others are doing so too.

He likes to hide his shadow in yours if you ever walk in a park, which is easy for him, with a body emaciated like the men on a crucifix.

When things seem coldest, the cold attacks from within. A virus of farenheit, blue ice in one’s veins. This is when he comes with a jumper

and a smile with fake teeth. The jumper will smell like decrepit car air-freshener,

and he tells you to keep it free of charge - that’s what friends are for.

But the jumper is heartless, and it only makes you colder. Like an ersatz smile, like feigned attention.

But you’ve taken it now, it really is so easy. I don’t blame you. After all, he sits in the corner of every room you enter. And eventually

you spark up a conversation. Just don’t talk of love, for his stare will come back blank.

Don’t mention mountain hiking, for he’s never been above sea level.

In fact, don’t mention anything, for his whole life has been spent

sitting in corners

like a spider in its web. Like a rat who turns tail at the false sound of wind.

Like ballet shoes in closets, that in time find their way to the very back and bottom

and settle like dust and with dust and at end.