I can barely take my eyes off you
long enough to write you a poem
for fear you could vanish
when I look away
in the time it takes to
find a blank page
you could dematerialize
decide to take a walk
forget to come back
fall asleelp
not wake up

it might be a mania of mine
I see you are still here

I tell you I love you
you say it back
or not
depending
but you do

I don’t doubt you
I don’t doubt me
but how can I not hear
the hauting quiet
after you’re gone
even while you are
still here?

that deafening silence that lasts for years

you’re a slippery fish
my piscis
but I know
what you won’t say
that I am your safe cave

I’ve watched you look for me
in crowded places
and your face
when you find me
is worth of a poem