A Ticking Heart

A clockwork prince

stands by my side.

His heart ticks loud,

sounding inside his metal chest.

The prince’s hand I clasp

his fingers encasing mine-

cold as ice and marble.

But though his hand gives no return

of loving emotion,

I cannot help but cling to it still.

My gaze travels up to his clockwork face,

Flawless skin as smooth as silk

covers gears and unrelenting metal.

Eyes as human and callous as the sea

stare down to me with little accord.

Those eyes-

the deepest gold encasing

the blackest darkness of his pupils.

Those beautiful eyes,

 stare into mine with little remorse.

Only a flicker, a glimpse so quick

it is hardly noticeable,

flashes behind those golden disks.

And in that heartbeat second I see

the man this metal emir used to be.

I see love and longing;

Passion as far across as the sky.

Yet it is only a flicker of what once lived,

then it is gone.

Now, again, all that stare back at me

are human eyes

that slowly surrender to the hatefulness

of a clockwork prince’s ticking heart.

A heart no longer beating with life,

but by turning gears; catching and pushing.

Pushing and pulling.

 

I slip my hand from the metal fingers encasing it.

Knowing now that this metal thing,

my clockwork prince,

will never again be capable of love.

Because clockwork simply cannot feel emotion.

Does not live.

Does not fight or love or perceive.

It just is.

So I must relinquish my love for him,

knowing that if I stay,

my fidelity may not be returned.

But he will never cease to exist

in my still beating heart.

I will forever treasure

the softness of his eyes,

eyes that shine like the sun.

I will forever recollect

the way his hand once held mine,

free of the stiffness of metal.

As centuries pass by

without my prince standing beside me,

the sound of his living, beating heart

will forever be locked in my mind.

For I would rather dream of that,

than live with the clockwork prince

who has given in to the temptations

of eternity.

Reviews

[Katie Marie]

This was a very thought-provoking piece. Your descriptions were wonderful. I could perfectly picture your clockwork prince. I could feel the emotions of a love that once was but is no more, the longing for someone that is now just a memory of who he once was, and the sadness with having to give him up. I loved it! (Not that I love sadness and longing and heartbreaking love...I meant that it was a great poem ;) )
Keep up the great work. :)

-Katie

P.S.- Text me...I'm bored hehe

[BrokenDreamer]

I love this! Absolutely! In a sense it is relatable to what every girl has seen or is going to see with a boy. You will feel so strongly for him, but even if he once did for you, he is no longer capable of love. Nice read!

[Team_Jaward_Gale]

nice buddy

[Inyourshadow]

The nutcracker came to mind Reading this as your poem was as beautiful as the fairy tale. How sad a story of love without feeling, a real heart breaker, keep em' coming

[Michael Thrower]

I love it! The whole clockwork idea puts a great steampunk visual on it. Great job!