Rope Flowers

by Megan Spreadbury

sitting in an empty room

I confided in you

so slowly did we suffer

sitting under broken shutters

the window open

my mind a blank token

of bleeding hope

as we lost sight of every rope

our hands clung to

fighting to run though

water as we were tossed

under and lost

breath so fast

every creature floating past

looked weary

for our sanity

my empty room

every flower in bloom

but no feeling

would be arising

even at the sign of currents

and suffocating burdens

that broke treacherous pieces

into glass shards so priceless

I could cut my hand open

from gripping the broken

angled mass

only trying to pick up the mess

I caused in the first place

sitting in an empty space

so far away

from the day

I was underwater

but also unbothered

saving ourselves

from the drought

I jumped in

so maybe you could live

but we sit so still

on the windowsill

blood running down stark

white fingers in the dark

where we clutch our rope…

too afraid to let go