can i come inside

you once said mine is the one voice you truly know

tethers you to this life and the next

tethered me to you

two halves almost made whole (a gravestone, some may call it)

young, sweet, foolishly naive

“say you’ll never leave me, gretel”

“I would never even dream of it, hansel”

this is my brother, and I love him more than life itself

time stretches on like taffy

I keep dreaming of my hansel on top of me

under heavy covers and quiet shushes

“this is just ours, gretel, and no one else’s”

you tell me to be good, and I desire nothing less

while hansel kisses me upon my chest

“just ours, and you are mine”

and it’s too dark to see my hansel’s eyes

but I know my brother, and he and his game are only ever kind

this is my brother, and I need a pen to love him

I’m rewriting memories you’ve already stolen

the way you’ve taught me to

following each breadcrumb back

around every corner, around every crevasse

there’s you

haunting me, taunting me

hansel, my lover, can you feel me still?

lying bare beneath you, like you told me to

our secret weighs heavy inside me

you once did too

“I’ll love you forever, gretel”

hansel, what if you’re the only one who does?

oh my hansel, oh my soul

you’ve turned me into a ghost

you’ve gone places I can’t seem to follow

I am hollow without you here

I see you carrying pieces of me around

in your front pocket

keep them close to you, our two hearts beating

so you know I’ll never try to leave

hansel, you swore to protect me

who do you kill when it’s your hand under my skirt

your teeth that trap my lips

your mouth that drinks my cries

your voice that wraps around my neck

oh hansel, my brother, I’m unraveling

this is my brother, and I need a gun to love him

point the pistol at your head, but in my mouth the bullet is found

it’s your blood on the leafs, but my life that leaves our eyes

hansel, you said you’d be mine forever (but I think you lied)

this is how you show your love

our two bodies laid to rest, side by side

how we were always meant to be

brother, will you be inside me tonight?

I miss your warmth, your skin, your sighs

I keep finding myself alone in our oven

thinking of your game, your touches

I can feel myself melting into the flames

each lick chanting your name

hansel, hansel, you’ve ruined me

I can’t breathe without you near

and I can’t think, and I can’t sleep

whilst you press your body against another

come back, come back finish the job like a man

fix me like you used to, like only you can

hold my innocence between your teeth once more

make sure the witch swallows the key to her oven door

oh hansel, oh my heart, there’s no me without you

my hansel, my brother, my end

I’m still yours, forever

— my hansel’s only good for burning things alive