Toka Siyam
Contributor
Nobody tells you how lonely 18 is
You buy your own groceries
You take the long way home because the therapist says walking is good for you
You don’t text your best friend when you cry at night
You stay in and forget what love felt like
You celebrate your birthday in the dark, no cake for you
You pick up your journal and
You try to write about it but the words never find a way
No one tells you, 18 is just picking up the kid you thought you left behind
Because the sounds that scared him are still there
And now, they’re harder to ignore
Because 18 is just lonely
18 is being stuck in a dark corner isolated from everyone you know