you wanted to leave

i caught sight of the way you kept tugging your sleeve

anticipation for someone to believe you’re never coming back the way you once conceived in this night weaved in front of us

pleasure on a platter

the ghosts speak up and acquaintances scatter

regular love in the color of light splashed on doorways for us to know where not to go if this desert drive proves anything about our love

clouds formed from forgotten words

breath coming from a place you had once reserved for theft now brings warmth where shivered emotions were in high supply

“it’s easy to die” you’d say

i wished i knew that

not so i could leave

so i could stand sure and graft to the branches of exalted love where carefree children swing for days, not looking for answers, not searching for keys, not unlocking anything

just swinging for the swing and the sound of unregulated laughter

i can’t leave

there’s too much to forget