The quite stayed

The room remembers better than I do.

The light still falls the same.

I hold my breath when silence gets too loud,

Like it still knows my name.

I hide my heartbeat underneath my sleeves,

Pretend I’m doing fine.

But every mirror keeps a secret

That I never made mine.

You faded.

The feeling didn’t.

I left.

The quiet didn’t.

You don’t get to live inside my skin.

You don’t get to call this home.

I’m gathering the pieces one by one,

Learning how to stand alone.

If my voice comes out in whispers,

It’s still louder than your lies.

You disappeared the day you chose to hurt me—

I’m the one who survived.

Some nights I leave the hallway lights on,

Not because I’m still afraid.

Just trying to teach my nervous system

That the darkness has changed.

My hands don’t shake the way they used to.

My heart still skips sometimes.

Healing isn’t getting over it—

It’s choosing to stay alive.

I won’t erase the story.

I won’t wear your shame.

You don’t get my future

Just because you took that day.

The quiet stayed…

But so did I.

The shadows came…

They passed me by.

I lost my innocence—

Not who I am.

I’m still breathing.

That’s where I began.