Broken Hearts

Broken Hearts

I heard he’d moved on

Still had me though

Coming home from college

To my loving arms

He was harsh and moody

I felt isolated

Cut off divided

Always unhappy

I realized with shock

I deserved better

Tried hard to go

With no fuss

No muss

Avoid the trial, drama, and recriminations

We’d just be friends

He agreed, or so, I thought

But hearts are delicate

Feelings linger

And when I moved on

I still broke his heart

For he could see

I’d found the one

He told me he was broken

He cried, he ranted, he raged

He called me names

I forgave him…

Eventually, taking all the blame

I moved on, married,

Still, I wondered

How he was

Even though I was still angry

With his behaviour, all the same

I was vain enough to think

He’d never be okay

But he moved on

Got a life

Got a wife

We both made the choices

We needed to make

Some years later

We met again

He apologized for words said

We can now just be friends

And look back with fond memories

To hours of yesterday

When we were teens in love.

Taking a break

From drama and recriminations

Trying not to break hearts

We’d remain friends

I said, to let him down easy

We date other.

I went out with friends

I met the one

Who asked me out

I was honest with my former love

His heart crumpled

He raged, he cried

I felt bad

But it was over

I shattered his heart

In the theatre that night

We didn’t speak again

Until years later

His heart had recovered

He’d moved on

I felt less guilty

But I still knew

I was the one who broke his heart

Copyright 2023 © Sheilagh G. Lee