Home Alone

A weekend escape,

for her mother-

but a break,

from her mother.

The house is empty.

When her Buddy stilled,

she ran to him,

scooping him up,

holding him together.

Help, help-

is anyone there?

But doors stayed shut.

She sat alone on their couch,

his warmth fading.

A call from a neighbor,

prompted her mother's return,

but grief had no arms—

only his,

a man she trusted like a father,

who held her

while the sky fell

and the silence settled.