Sleep's Curse

by Cadence McCracken
(Martinez CA)

Sleep's curse destroys my life,
taking meaning, taking her.
We say it'll be okay,
but I know it won't.
I really wish it were.

If I hadn't fallen asleep
you wouldn't have stumbled upon my tears.
You say it's for the best,
but I know I'll die.
Meet my end by 15 years.

If sleep's curse wasn't death,
maybe then I'd let her sleep.
She says I'll be better off,
but I need her to breathe.
At our funerals, who will weep?

If sleep had eluded me last night,
I'd still have her by my side.
Now I plead "stay"
and fight a goodbye.
As I slept, alone she cried.

Sleep's curse set in motion
that which stole away my will to live.
They say nothing,
like I wish you would.
Life and limb for her I'd give.

Sleeping alone in silence now
will kill me from the inside out.
I'm falling fast
as she drops my hand
and continues on a different route.

(I WANT TO FOLLOW.)

Sleep's cursing me with the knowledge
that she could not reach me if she tried.
Bleeding never felt so good,
because I'm alone and deserve it.
24 hours in which we died.

If I sleep, my nightmares will hunt me down
with loneliness and guilt.
I say you won't believe me
until you're proven wrong.
I'll crumble with the friendship I've built.

Phones used to save me from sleep's curse
but with the silence now will come pain.
The life's siphoned from my veins
as she believes the lies you told.
Already I'm less sane.

Maybe in my absence she'll get some sleep,
but I doubt either of us will.
She says I don't need her,
but she's ignorant to the fact
that I always did, and do still.

In the end, it was sleep's curse
and myself that I blame.
She's only doing
what she thinks best.
You two don't know of shame.

Sleeping in the silence will ache
worse than the cuts and tears and bruises.
I lose her, she loses me,
and you both lose me, too.
A plan where everybody loses.

Death will bring relief from sleep's curse,
but only for her, as it's her death.
I feel it rising,
and I try to fight it,
but can I stop her from taking her last breath?

Three times I fell asleep beside her
and now we're both all alone.
Confusion and abandonment
combined last night,
leaving me with a silent phone.

Sleep's curse now curses me to lie awake
and wait for a message to appear.
But none will come,
so cry I must,
overcome with certainty, silence, and fear.

Our immortal, don't leave us to sleep
wondering where we all went wrong.
Don't leave us to sit alone
and cry your name
and softly sing the song.

Escaping sleep's curse only drives me
farther into the abyss.
But if I rest,
I'll fall to the bottom.
This pain becomes endless.

I sleep sanely with demented dreams,
and a reality torn in between the two.
If I lose her,
I'll lose my mind,
and I will NEVER forgive you.

© 2011 Cadence McCracken