a short way from you, a few steps just across

in a tiny hole near the core of my world there resides a heart,
hidden yet still beating.

beneath a comfortable shade a short way from where you live,
i scratched the surface of the earth with the scuff of my toe,
a little bit every day, until the ground caved in.

a few steps from the front of your door,
so near you would have seen with a peek from your window,
i battled with the devil. a war you could only imagine. leaving
the marks of a grave i never intended to make, to wait for you.

across from your comfort, i struggled with love.
unaware, you passed by me (a short way from me, a few steps just across)
until conquered, i placed my heart in a grave created by the scuff of my toe.
you will never know of my longing or of the nights i spent in a shade near you.
you will never know, my heart, my life has gravitated alongside yours but never with.

in a tiny hole beneath the place you call home,
i have placed my defeated heart. hidden, yes, but still waiting.