Solitary Beat 💓

This is my beat.
My rhythm.
A solitary drum
in bone.
I play.
Blood keeps time.
I indulge the sound
the way a candle
indulges flame
aware of the dark
that leans in.
I dance
alone,
or with what I invite
close enough
to burn.
The devil knows my name.
He waits
for excess,
for hunger,
for the wick to forget itself.
I keep him at bay
with measure.
With silence.
With hands steady
around my light.
I don’t need you
at my fire.
I don’t need
your sparks.
My blood already burns.
I am a candle
burning brightly
in a vast dark world.
And the devil
stays
where the light
ends.