The Betrayer Has Returned
The Betrayer Has Returned
Three A.M.
Someone pounding on the door
It takes a minute
To gather my senses
And my baseball bat
“Stop Pounding!”
“I’m coming!”
My voice crackles
Adrenalin rushing
Crossing the room in seconds
Gathering up courage
My voice deepens
“Who is it?”
A second passes
Maybe two
Instincts taking over
Then a quiet voice speaks
“It’s me”
All at once my world starts to spin
A great flashback
Emerging and all-consuming
His voice
A chain reaction
The words form in my mind
But never reach my lips…
The betrayer has returned
Haunting memories filled with pain
I still feel his sharpened blade
My back the target
And yet without any remorse
I open the door
And invite him in
He stands frozen as our eyes lock
There are no secrets
A lifetime of memories
Mostly good
But ended badly
Truth is a heavy burden
Our last day together
Seems so long ago
When I stood firm
Ready to give anything
Trying to take the pipe away
And he laughed
Called me his mother
And when the fix took hold
Called me a whole lot more
Words grew louder
Fists were raised
And then nothing
He just stumbled away
And I was left standing there
With a knife of betrayal in my back
And a feeling of emptiness
As my best friend walked away
Left me bleeding
Or so it felt that way
Chose the high over me
Snapping back to reality
His eyes downward
Some mumbling
Then a whispered truth,
“I’m sorry”
He crossed the threshold
And entered my life once again
Additional Reading
This is part 2 of a three part series of poems. Part 1 can be found here. Stay turned for Part 3, which should be coming soon.
R.J. Schwartz is an American poet and website owner. Visit this link to read more of his works on his other site (many are adult content and themes).
- Distraction, You See - September 14, 2023
- Exhaustion - August 27, 2023
- Tis Now Yours to Carry Muse - July 6, 2023
Emotive and well-written. Great work, Ralph.
Interested in reading the following parts. Jamie
Excellent, Ralph. I can relate to this. Looking forward to part three.