Title – I Don’t Burn
They say hell hath no fury, and maybe they’re right,
But I don’t burn for him — I burn for the light.
The one he tried to dim with every lie he told,
Trading my warmth for something cheap and cold.
He called it love —
But love doesn’t sneak out at midnight.
Love doesn’t flinch when the truth finds the light.
He thought I’d break, thought I’d crawl,
But darling, I stood. I rose. I grew tall.
I gave him laughter, gave him time,
Gave him pieces of a heart I called mine.
He gave me silence, shadows, and shame,
And a hollow apology too late, too lame.
Now he walks in memories, fading and slow,
Just a face in the crowd I no longer know.
I’m not bitter — I’m seasoned. Not broken — I bend.
And the next time love calls, I’ll choose a friend.
Because once you’ve been scorched, you learn to discern—
Some flames just flicker, but some…
some burn.
Michael Forty