Umbrage.

I thought the heat would
be suffocating today,

that remorse would
build up in tear ducts
and puddles of sweat
would trail down
my spine.

I'm not as strong as I
always claimed to be,

soon, my heart will
know this too.

But I see you moving
with the wind,
white lilacs in your eyes,

the canopy of trees
offering a gentle shelter

for the moments I feel
the most exposed.

Ants scatter across
ankle bones and I
forget the hollowness,

the pit of a plum
swallowed by the sun

and I wait to collapse,

at least, for now.