Ruby Tears

Blood pours out of her eyes  
and she says it's joy
I wonder if it's not just a ploy
to throw me off the scent
My nostrils taste the aerosol and open flame
If that is fire in her eyes
then the tears must be gasoline
or drops of kerosene
She bawls but the pain is elsewhere hidden
shelled by the bold eagerness to shed a smile
She used to be an enemy of sleep
but now she's bedridden
Vibrant yet anxious to die
She hardly ever really cries
and when she does  
lava streams down her cliff-like cheeks
She claims that the anguish is just too sweet
to be squandered on a mere tear
Wailing when she is elated
to her  
is a sign
that she isn't weak
She bursts out laughing  
and I begin to yowl