No Place Nowhere

by John Michael Mouskos

She said,
“There was a knock at the door;
The boy had returned,
Walking through the night,
To be with us once more.”

Beyond the padlocked gate,
And seamless trees
Dividing our worlds;
One by one the branches fell,
I never saw them bleed,
It was never meant to hurt.
“God help me through this,” “Mama, I love you,”
Scribbled on wardrobe doors,
In rooms of differing colours,
In rooms with no mirrors,
Where the sounds have been turned off,
And emptiness fills every corner,
Is sucking something out of me every day,
Learning to lie while smiling,
Imagining being on the phone to mummy;
Where is she? Where can she be?

I climbed you and scratched myself,
I learned to bleed at night, where I can’t be seen;
I learned to sleepwalk with open eyes,
So no one can hurt me.