Unconditional

We made the perfect fairytale;
You were everything
I spent my life dreaming of-
That movie script friendship.

We saw it all;
We shared it all;
We held each other up
Through every terrifying
Bout of turbulence.

We made promises-
Never to be uprooted,
Never to be wilted
And never to be neglected.
We meant “forever”-
At least, I did.

You chose to force others
Into my place at your side.
The problem, though-
My shoes are much too large
For anyone else to fill.
Your entire army of imposters
Could not collectively
Fill the void left
When you force me out.

Even you know this,
As you come crawling back,
Calling me when night falls,
Because they can’t foot the bill.

Two decades, tossed-
Like the scraps on your plate.
It’s a wound
That no stitch can hold.

Even though you took
Everything of value from me;
Even though your hands
Are still bloody,
Around my neck;
Even though you continue
To break my heart;
Even though your “forever”
Wasn’t real-
Mine will always remain.

I’ve tried for all our years
To make you understand-
My faintly beating,
Battered and strangled heart
Still offering you all of me-
This is it, babe.
This is what “unconditional” means.