Could Have Left Me Alone

You saw the gates were rusted shut,

the hinges stiff with years of pride,

but still you spoke in careful tones

until I let you step inside.

I didn’t just hand you the keys.

I cleared the rooms and swept the floors.

I made a home out of my chest

and opened all the heavy doors.

I gave you more than steady hands.

I gave you safety, gold, and bone.

A dangerous thing happened then

I started planning with you home.

I let your name affect my days,

my spending habits, peace of mind.

Built whole tomorrows from your words

like you had promised you were mine.

To wake a heart that learned to sleep

just to watch it starve for breath,

to take the harvest of my years

and leave a field resembling death

that kind of damage lingers long.

It settles deep inside the soul.

Because before you, loneliness

was painful… but at least controlled.

If love was not your true intent,

or if you knew you couldn’t stay,

you should have seen the “Closed” sign there

and simply turned the other way.

You should have left me untouched then.

Left all my walls and locks alone.

Don’t make a man believe again

if you can’t love him all the way home.