The Last Book

I clutched the book
you gave me to my chest
& felt its heart beating
with you.
Down to the core of its pages,
cracked spine,
faded cover;
a moment stolen from cruel time.
The lines of words
form your unmatched, musical face
til my eyes lose focus
& the book starts to bleed.
How many you’ve given;
I can’t keep them,
wondering when you will be back.
I’d consume them,
but then there would be nothing left
but emptiness