house of horrors

Tight spaces.  Sharp corners. 

I see faces.  I see scars. 

I can't get out.  I can't stop this. 

We try to run, we don't get far. 

Every wall contains a person,

Every person looks the same. 

Wide-eyed terrified and running

I know each story, know each name. 

They seem to all close in around me

I push to find a space to breathe. 

A missing wall--I follow through it.

And for a bit I think I'm free. 

But no!  This looks just like the others,

It doesn't matter where I go.

I'm trapped inside this house of horrors,

Where fear and guilt are all I know. 

But I still try to outrun myself,

Escape the things I cannot hide,

The dirty, shameful parts of me,

All my regrets that haven't died.

At every turn I face my failures,

The past, the present, future, all. 

At last I know it's time to give up,

We bend our knees and take the fall. 

And now, my hands upon the glass,

My own eyes staring back at me,

I realize in this maze of mirrors

I'm facing my worst enemy.

There's only one way to escape;

One last chance to end all of this!

The shards of glass rain all around me,

I feel the blood drip down my fists.

I plunge the glass into my chest,

And finally my nightmare's done.

But though I'm no longer in pain,

I don't know if I've lost or won.