A

Soft heart

Once loved much

Hardened after

Each disappointment

Where there was once softness

Now all has been turned to stone...

James sighed deeply as he walked through the old cathedral halls; everything he owned packed in the small rucksack on his back.

He rubbed his fingers along the marred pew top he had carved his initials into as a child. When his mother found out, she'd made sure he wasn't able to sit in a pew (or anything other seat for that matter) for a full week.

He chuckled as he looked thoughtfully at the w...

Shower, breakfast, coffee, kiss

My wife and dog I know I'll miss...

My eyes opened and closed. Opened and closed. Desperately not wanting to return to painful consciousness, but some primal part of me feeling the necessity of it.

After many tries, I was able to keep my eyes open long enough to get a look. There wasn’t much to see, it was so dark. I feared I might be blind.

“N-n-no, oh God no,” I was able to mutter through freezing, dry lips. I raised a trembli...

Hot tears fell from Jackson's face onto the paper. He felt so tired.

He thought about his near empty bank accounts, thankless job, family he hadn't seen in too long. The more he did, the more he felt his chest would cave in from the pressure.

Jackson looked down the note he'd been working on for hours now. So hard to find the right words, he'd never been good at expressing his emotions.

"The...

The dog

Returns to its vomit

Only to get sick again

The dog

With a new name and family

Lives a new life...