I know your heartbeat
Nearly as well
as I know my own.
Thump. Thump. Beat. Beat.
And a slight skip.

I've become a professional
In the art of making you


Skip

beats.


I've made it stutter,
Made it falter,
cracked it in half
and stomped on the pieces.

But I've always returned
With a sweep and a pan
And laid out the pieces
Like a puzzle
Even a master puzzle solver
Is hesitant to attempt.

I know your heart
Nearly as well as I know my own.
I can make you throb,
I have,
Made you ache
in absolute anguish

And I've ripped you in half
Driven you insane
Put you on the edge
And pushed you off the cliff
I've watched you fall
Watched you drown in the river below.

But I know your heartbeat
Nearly as well as I know my own.
And I've heard it stop.
I've prayed and pleaded
For a lightning bolt to your chest
For it to start
For that familiar beat
to skip again.

I have Frankenstein-d you
Stitched up
And electrocuted
Until I don't recognize
The man in front
Of me.
I screamed, “It's ALIVE!”
Only to watch you die again.

I know your heart
Nearly as well
As I know my own.
Which is why
As I lie here listening
to that thump. Thump.
Beat. Beat.


Skip.


I wonder if the stutter
and the falter
and the river below
Were all in my head.

But that can't be.
Because

I know your heartbeat
Nearly as well
As I know my own.