Sanity

A name on the wind
A lost memory playing through his broken mind
Barely recognizable in the growing darkness

“Rose”

He can almost see her face,
Almost feel the warmth of her hand in his
Almost remember the sound of her voice in his ear

She turns to him
And suddenly, he’s cured
He’s normal

These are the times that keep her there
That keep her hoping
But it’s all at a loss

For quicker even than they arrived
Reminding him of himself, his history, the world around him,
The memories leave him, taking more and more of his sanity as they go

Forever he’s lost
Saddened by the look in her eyes
Angered because he can’t remember how to help her

“Rose”

He tries to wipe the tears from her cheek
Tries to comfort her
But he can’t remember how

Rage bottles up in the instant before his skin meets hers
And it’s released as they touch
An unkind act of violence

He draws his hand away
Fury swelling in his eyes by his fault
Ashamed that he can’t hold on to what was once his

And he flees in fear
In hatred
In sorrow

“Rose”

She stands
Not even bothering to feel the swell near her eye
Not even paying note to the blood rushing out of the gash on her cheek

“He was better” She whispers
And, for a moment, she’s right
But only for a moment

They tell her to leave him
Her friends
They tell her that she’ll get hurt

But as skies turn grey she always returns to his call
Because she can still see it
The progress he’s not making

And as she watches from afar
(No matter how close she actually is)
He slips further away from the sanity she knows he once had

All he remembers is held in her
And so he clings to her like a magic charm
Relying on her faith in him to pull through

If only it worked
If only he could hold back the frustration the comes when the memories fade
If only things had never gone wrong in the first place

“Rose”

A name in the wind
An incomprehensible word that means so much to him
If only he could remember why