Jaw set, back straight, count to four Heel on the tile like I own the floor Name every turn before it arrives Make a command out of staying alive I stack each second in a clean straight row Push through the signal my body says no My hands keep drawing what my eyes can't read More force, more pace, more proof, more speed I bark at the static inside my head: GET IN LINE! The words hit hard, then drop there dead Now the riff is gone and my shoulders shake There is no clean edge for my grip to take My tongue tastes copper, my shirt sticks cold I spent every answer before it was told There are arrows in ink, but none say where Just corners crossing in empty squares I trace one twice, lose where I began I have the motion I don't have the plan My feet still run when the road runs out My mouth forms orders I no longer trust Every line I follow folds in my hand I keep moving with no floor plan No landing under the next demand No honest answer for where I am Reset the count, pull the breathing tight Square every angle, make it come out right Press down the tremor, swallow the doubt If I hit it harder, I can wear it out But the grid keeps buckling under the pen I number the exits, then number again STAND UP! My knees don't listen SPEAK CLEAR! The sentence splits NO MORE— The order empties before it hits I drive the weight through a failing frame It gives me noise It gives no name So I let my hands fall open at my sides Not to release, not to decide The page is warm from the pressure of skin The marks are there; I can't enter them I hear the beat keep time without me One, then another, no guarantee I am still awake in the after-sound Too tired to claim that I have been found My feet go still where the road runs out My mouth holds orders I no longer trust Every line I followed folds in my hand I am standing with no floor plan No landing under the next demand No honest answer for where I am I could draw an arrow just to see one point I could call it true and lock every joint I know that reflex I know its cost Tonight I won't rename being lost I don't know where this goes I don't know what comes next I only know I don't know And I have nothing left to add
