summer

tempest

i feel so empty

i used to
write my initials next to yours,
scratched it onto
hastily torn looseleaf paper
for would-be pop quizzes,
onto desks
marred by
penciled genitalia
(which i might add
were quite disproportionate),
and onto my skin:
knowing that the
ballpoint pen tattoos
only left blotches,
faded ink,
& a weary heart.

but we fell out of love
so d e s p e r a t e l y,
staunching our wounds
with trembling
promises unkept,
erasing something
that kept our
blood flowing,

like the way
Icarus
clutched hope as he
plummeted
into
nothingness,

it was
all
d o n e
in vain.

because even now,
i can't forget you.