Teen Sport Killing of Homeless

I rode an elevator with a homeless man -
his matted hair reached out to the walls.
Flakes of starvation were left in his beard.
The smell of oil and wet cats
made the others walk quickly when the doors opened.

[According to the National Coalition, the number of attacks against homeless people are at the highest in a decade.]

-Ding-
Floor five displayed a beautiful couple -
blonde hair brought them together.
Lilacs filled the space.
It smelled like fields of purple flowers in the rain.

[122 attacks with 20 murders of homeless victims.]

In that moment, we were a part of his life -
fixtures in his space, breathing through our mouths.

[Experts say for some teens, this passes as amusement.]

The couple huddled together in a corner -
yellow locks tangled around the woman's cellphone.
They walked out of our lives on floor eight,
two quick smiles and a pale wave.
No more fields of lilacs -
the oil sprung up and covered every flower.

[They hurled whatever they could find; rocks, bricks, and pounded the 49 year old man with a baseball bat.]

The doors slid open on floor 10.
I stared at the man -
his blue-red eyes shined and
he stayed against the wall.

"This is the last floor sir, are you lost?"

He raised a grey hand and shook his head.
"No ma'am, the streets are no place for a homeless man".