The victor's burden

The kind skies smile today,
Golden rays beaming hope,
Raining down the joyous shouts
As I walk alone on the flowery bed.

Happy faces ecstatic with joy,
Greet me as I walk,
And yet the deafening chorus can't drown
The silence of the defeated.

I wave my hand with head raised high,
A smile plastered on my tired face,
As I trudge through the victory run,
And feel the glare of the defeated.

I won because I could,
My talents surpass your mortal realms,
Or so I thought till the day I fought,
And won by a marginal thread.

And yet I won, that is a fact,
For now, there is none above,
Strong as I may be, I know it well,
A champions crown is a slippery thing.

Alone I stand in the midst of the crowd,
Glancing behind my back,
Afraid of footsteps behind,
For it is just a matter of time.