"Lime and Bleach" by Freedom Strange

POETRY

lime soaked with bleach
and your name written in sand but
the waves take it away before anyone sees
and your heart
spasming on the ground as you walk away.
it’s like this, darling.
the seeds of doubt you planted in my soul
have spiraled up and out and blossomed,
a riot of thorns and flowers.
my ribcage holds nothing but echinacea and acid.
it's like this, darling.
your breath scorched my lungs
until there was nothing left to breathe
but the blood and poison you gave me.
it's like this, darling.
we were never meant to be
it’s like this, darling.

Freedom Strange (all pronouns) is a young queer writer from Texas. In their free time, they enjoy collecting old records, drawing in the margins of their textbooks, and taking photos of the places they've traveled to. She writes poetry and speculative fiction, and runs her own zine, The Bibliopunk. Follow him @FreedomStrange on Twitter.