The Boy

He was the boy in the back

who never seemed

to know the question

who had enough going on 

that reading would be a luxury 

to let him escape. 

To run away. 

But he couldn’t do it. 

Life hadn’t treated him well 

as he was put in the wrong hands 

at the wrong time. 

And the number

that the teacher had given 

out of one-hundred didn’t represent 

what he could be 

if he would’ve been the ace 

in the lucky hand. 

But he was just a card. 

Dropped on the table, 

never loved, 

because he wasn’t needed. 

Wasn’t wanted. 

But he still stood up 

and faced the darkness 

that surrounded him. 

He just wanted to find 

a big enough blanket 

to seal him away 

so he could finally feel warmth, 

but someone always ripped it off. 

Because his life was a freezer. 

A broken one 

that a door couldn’t open 

and he tried to unplug it 

with the drugs, 

and the alcohol, 

and the rope, 

and the knives. 

Because his blood oozing out 

was the only thing 

that reminded him 

that he was alive. 

But yet he still sat at the back 

by the air conditioner 

because no one else 

could bare the cold 

but he was used to it. 

Cold. 

Ice. 

To him, 

pain wasn’t something 

that hit him with a rock. 

It was a darkness 

that was kept shut in a jar 

that no one could break, 

that no one could open,

that no one could crack, 

because it was already melted. 

And that F, 

placed on the slice of a tree 

by the one 

that could hear his screams 

that didn’t listen, 

didn’t represent him, 

but he didn’t notice.

Reviews

[EloisaWrites]

His whole story and the struggle and isolation of his world are all written here. This is not just a poem; it is a documentary of those struggles and those feelings. I have my sympathy for this boy. This is a great write! :)

[Jared Michael Smith]

Once again, a very intense topic, but wonderful all the same. My only comment would be on your use of commas; I feel like the ends of many of your lines don't need commas because they flow better without them. Try to sift through it and find the thoughts that would be complete without the comma. At the same time, though, I found it very well-written and heartwrenching. Good work! :D