Here's a story of a teenage boy dressed in black,
he held his secrets close to his heart,
black and blue of bruises splashed across his back.

He wears a mask of happiness upon his face,
he showed his true emotion through his art,
black and blue covered what was once empty white space.

Nobody suspects anything wrong at school,
he looks like every other high school student,
black and blue, he wasn't popular nor was he "uncool."

With perfect grades and false happiness for show,
you'd never guess his father was an abusive alcoholic, his mother was dead,
black and blue followed him everywhere he would go.

Everyday when school got out, he dreaded going home,
he wore long sleeves to hide his old and new scars,
black and blue, he'd never felt so alone.

One day, something happened, a tragedy, a miracle you might even say,
he walked home to find his father, the one who hurt him every day, was gone,
black and blue began to disappear that very day.

Twenty years later, he holds his newborn son to his chest,
with an oath in mind he'll never touch alcohol or repeat the past,
he hugs his son, and as a father, he promises to be at his very best.

Now here's a rather serious question for you,
we all walk by people who hide their own secrets like this everyday,
but if you caught a glimpse of this secret, what would YOU do?