GUTTERBLOOM

I grew in the bile and the bottle caps tar lungs, brick tongue, cigarette traps no light, no lift, just crawl and hiss fed on spite and a mother's near-miss maggots made maps where my roots should go I chewed through nails just to watch things grow don't call it trauma, it's habitat I didn't bloom, I adapted to that I’m not healed, I’m weaponized came up through the cracks with butchered pride they paved me in, but I still bite I’m a gutterbloom bitch, grow outta spite sleep in the crawlspace under the guilt wash my face in the blood they spilt they prayed while I peeled back teeth learned love from a fist and grief soft things rot in places like this so I burned mine down just to feel less missed I built a crown out of what I lack I wore that filth like a leatherback I’m not healed, I’m weaponized came up through the cracks with butchered pride they paved me in, but I still bite I’m a gutterbloom bitch, grow outta spite I was born with nothing now I keep less scraped joy off a floor called it success if I made it out you should ask what had to die so I could pass spit me out I came back wrong not a flower just a scar grown long I’m not healed, I’m weaponized came up through the cracks with butchered pride they paved me in, but I still bite I’m a gutterbloom bitch, grow outta spite I made it out but I didn’t leave clean