you can't spell "truth" without "rut" in poetry

never mind
for lines
the shortest distance between two points
is a lie
and there's a subtle difference
between a one-way lie
and a mutually-agreed-upon fiction
the difference is
the lie hurts less

when one person lies
it's like an ulcer
that slowly
can heal up inside

but when two people
share an unspoken emotional fiction
it just lies there between them
seeping
oozing
going septic
growing
gnawing
apoplectic

the kabuki of pretend
grows more sour
with every passing day
better to get it over with
let brutal honesty cauterize
instead of hanging there
to metastasize
and get worse
and worse
and worse
on and on forever

that open unspoken secret
is a recipe for never
let it go