After the Lie

A Poem

I will forgive you
for the moment you lost control
and called it honesty

I will forgive the insults conjured
when you felt small,
the way your voice reached for damage
before reaching truth

I accept now 
that your insecurity runs deep,
bruising whatever comes close
and calling the wound proof

I respected you once
I did
I mistook surface for substance,
shine for depth

I thought you were pretty

Instead you showed me
someone cruel, fractured
colors blending
conceit twisting into contempt,
bleeding outward
until memory recoils

There is an ugliness
that does not shout
but stains

Memory is such a sweet liar

That is what remains

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