Crystals of sunlight glimmer
the water.  A brief, cold rain

pelts its polished surface
and casts concentric rings

like halos, that widen
into nothing.

The waters of the lake
are her blank slate.

She writes with liquid
longing, sinks

her heartbreak
into the lightless depths.

She begins to shiver, but
peels off her sweater.

The cold stings her bare arms,
tempts her to shed the rest.

She pictures her bare skin
white with frost;

how the pain would still flicker
against the walls of her heart

like a fire that must be
doused.