a birthday cake that eats

you with the memories of old friends,

a new lover who holds you like

an undertow when you’re sleeping,

a dream that quotes his promises

only in the language of rain

a moon that hangs outside

your window like a peeping

tom, a secret meant to be born,

developing like a fetus

in your heart, air

so pregnant

with loneliness

that it crams mountains

into your lungs. pressure

that can be vanished only

by confronting yourself

hesitation that replaces

random bits of your DNA

with a midnight sky, taking

you deeper into that dark place

every time.