Linger

[popsadie]

(a third edit of leaving..new fourth stanza and other smaller edits)

I lingered at doorway
Crumpled Kleenex littered my step
I ripped a candy wrapper off my shoe
I could wait to leave.

I stared at paint peeled windows
Trash bag patches kept out the draft
Half-empty coke cups hugged the panes
I could wait to leave.

I checked my clothing for scent
Rotten milk wafted upon inspection
Dog kisses clung to my jeans
I waited.

I noticed a crooked photo frame
Five-year-old curls fell on a hand-sewn dress
My head rested against her arm
I could wait to leave.

I recalled twenty years spent
With stained sheets and roach hotels
Nights of acid tears and violent air
Still- I could wait to leave.