The Double Life

At the top of the stairs is a locked room My secret chamber that no outsider views For entry is forbidden prohibited Behind this door is my other self Not a picture in a frame nor a fresh disguise But my other self, immobile inert and sanguine My narcissus kisses exhale crimson breath And pump ruby to the lip I stand before myself not Jekyll nor Hyde Not sibling nor twin separated at birth I stand before myself unaccountable I dreamt that I had feet of clay I dreamt I crossed the seven seas And when I woke not knowing I knew I led the double life All I ever needed is twice removed I spit my bile in an airless temper In this vacuum a vampire reversed This one who breathes life into me And even dull mirrors reflect the tarnished twosome I stand before myself not another me Not doppelganger nor witless clone I stand before myself unrepentant I dreamt of sin and aftermath I dreamt of centuries laid bare And when I woke not knowing I knew I led the double life