I watch the screen as it flickers.
My room is dim, shrouding a version of myself
I cannot bear to show anyone else.
After reality has its way with me,
I throw myself into another world.
A place where I can stop being me.
Even if it's just for a moment.

Within the confines of this virtual world,
I am loved, feared, and ignored.
Here, I can save insentient lives that mean more to me than you will know.
Here, I can conquer lands and dominate my foes.
Here, I am also nobody.
No real face and no real name.
No one to tell me what and no one to tell me when.

Within the confines of this virtual world,
I am the hero, the villain, and the victim all in one.
I will heal you only because I cannot heal myself.
I will hurt you because my pain is a weapon I cannot aim at myself.
I will blame you for the hurt because I refuse to see the truth.

And when the game is over, the screen goes blank.
I stand up and walk my walk.
One foot after another, just like anybody else.
Leaving behind yesterday's pain
in the pixels of my beloved game.