Life, Yet Again

And so the physically broken girl

fell

for the emotionally broken boy

because alcohol

can wreak havoc on the mind

and the ability to make proper decisions.

It can make you

feel

love, lust, or what have you

for someone you shouldn’t.

It can make you let loose

that demon so neatly

locked away

for so long.

There is something worth

knowing

about the triple-cocktail.

The first pill worries you briefly;

it keeps him from hurting

himself.

The second pill is fine;

it helps him think

clearly.

The third pill is the one that

does you in;

it’s supposed to help him

feel empathy,

to help him care,

to keep him from hurting

you.

And as the two fell they were tangled

in ecstasy,

too thoroughly distracted by

pleasure

to worry about what pain the future may bring.

Falls like these seem to last

forever,

though they start just a

few feet

off the ground.

The illusion of time is only

broken

when one of the two notices the immediate

impact

they will have at the end of their journey.

All of a sudden they’re no longer floating,

falling lightly in the infinite abyss of yearning,

but plummeting to the

earth

with breakneck speed.

In this moment, when he does notice,

that third pill makes

all

the difference.

If it had worked, he could have saved them.

If he understood what

pain

he would bring her,

if he cared at all,

it would be as simple as landing

softly

on his feet and catching her.

Without that pill, his only choice was to let go.

He falls because he likes the sudden

stop

at the bottom.

That fall is what he wants.

And so the physically broken girl

fell

for the emotionally broken boy

because that’s exactly what he

wanted

her to do, and demons always get

exactly what they want.