I used to fall into a pit of despair.
It would consume me entirely.
People wanted me to fail.
People enjoyed seeing me suffer.

It was like their little treat of the day.
Their cup of tea.
They got off on it.

I won’t give that power anymore.
You never deserved my smile.
You never deserved my gentleness.
You thought it was weakness.

Keep thinking that.
Indefinitely.

Every moment you sit in silence,
remember:
you chose it.

You chose manipulation
instead of honesty.
You chose greed
instead of liberation.

You could have stopped it.
But you didn’t.

I don’t owe you anything.
Not my time.
Not my space.
Not my warmth.
Certainly not my truth.

Every time I open my mouth,
it means nothing to you.

So here is that space.
That emptiness.
That silence.

Just for you.