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Vitriol

11 Nov, 2025

I am an enemy of this world.
Vitriol courses through my veins and
I spew my teenage angst in heaps as I lie panting, face-down on the floor.
This bitter agony pools around my body, encompassing me
As I curse the cruelty I have faced,
For I am nothing except hated and hateful.

As ungrateful as I am, I lay stagnant and still,
Still waiting for the day when I take flight.
In the dead of the night, I lie awake until I must continue my unnoticed routine
Of cruising under the impression of normalcy.

Over the years, I have reminded myself that
I live my life in the passenger seat,
Letting the people in my life who come and go
Drive me towards destinations I have never heard of.
We traverse the space in between together,
Yet we are only connected by temporary means.

One day, I learn to love:
I learn what it means to feel warm and whole,
I enjoy car rides across grazing pastures, I lean into the comfort of routine.
And yet, I am still reminded that I am made of vitriol:
The acerbic taste in my mouth that never departs, taking me in the passenger seat, a token of my past.

This bitterness is a part of me, as I am a vessel for it.