echo chamber

written by evan young

you left your ghost in my throat again i can't scream without tasting you i sleep with the lights on and the doors unlocked, just in case your shadow wants to come through

i’ve been kissing smoke and calling it closure tracing apologies in steam on the mirror you said “forever” like a dare, not a promise and i keep losing to the echo i still hear

i found your hair in the bedsheets again, like a thread sewn into my spine. tried to wash you out with holy water, but it only made the haunt divine.

i’ve been kissing smoke and calling it closure tracing apologies in steam on the mirror you said “forever” like a dare, not a promise and i keep losing to the echo i still hear

your voice lives in the vents now, babe, singing secrets through the heat. and i sleep like a saint on fire, praying for you in defeat.

if i burned every picture, would i forget your hands? if i kissed someone else, would you still brand my plans? i swear i saw you in the static last night, mouth open, saying stay—then gone with the light.

i’ve been kissing smoke and calling it closure tracing apologies in steam on the mirror you said “forever” like a dare, not a promise and i keep losing to the echo i still hear