:ashes in the ink:

does she falter
                        for a moment
                                                in her perfect façade?
reading your letter,
                                                had she forgot
how much she loved
                                 the way that you sign your name?
does she detect
                                  the dark hidden shame
in the so crooked way
                                    that you dot her eyes?
does she notice,
                         perhaps,
                                    that you mispelled "demise"?
does she see
                          how your hand shook
                                                  as you wrote each word down?
does she know
                          the way you look
                                                  without your make-believe crown?
or does she, perhaps,
                               see nothing at all?
between the lines
                                  is only empty space for to fall~
will she find you tomorrow
                                      and smile with red wine in her hair?
will she love you,
                             her sorrow
                                             dissipating in air?

date:some time before my notebook with the original was stolen, 2006
The line popped in to my head quite suddenly when I glanced at my reflection in the stove, and then the rest just followed in a stream.
The "you mispelled 'demise'" is based off of a real incident, except that the person actually mispelled "despise." "Demise," however, fit better here. The "red wine in her hair," is based off of my love of red hair and a time when I bought champagne-scented shampoo. XD I didn't do it on purpose; I didn't look at the bottle too closely and thought it was strawberry. Why exactly do they sell champagne-scented shampoo? Because it smells lovely.