i have learned to
sew the edges of my lips together to
not make a sound
nothing could ever possibly
hurt more than your
disappointment
i am not
who
you would like me to be
and you watch
silently
as the frost settles over me
not realizing
how you have
turned me into the kind of person that
tells others to stop crying
J.M. Aveles (they/them) is a mixed-race writer and poet based in south-west Germany. Their work can be found in RIZEN ZINE.