For the umpteenth time, you want to come back,

whether in person, as a shadow, or a dream.

So, I will give you another opportunity.

For pleading your reason to reconcile,

knowing the outcome will be the same

due to old habits fueled by one-sided benefits.

For delivering “I’ll do better” promises

that have exceptions and excuses

which absolves you from fulfilling them.

For expressing words previously spoken.

Meaningless vocalizations without recourse

that should remain silent.

For executing gestures long overdue,

well past their expiration date.

But still hiding fresh agendas.

For when you’re done, I’ll only ask for a minute.

I’ll use all my 60 seconds for retribution

and your relegation to the shadows cast by my dreams.

For once I’ve finished clearing the air,

you won’t want to come back anymore.

You’ll understand I’m better off as you fade from my world.

They say love belongs in the light, where it’s easy and safe. But they don’t know what it feels like to love you...to lose myself in the quiet corners of the night, where shadows stretch long and our hearts speak louder than words. The faint beams of moonlight cast us into focus, our silhouettes blending like whispers shared too softly to be heard by anyone else.

You are a spark, one I didn’t know I was waiting for, and I? I’m the fire that you’ve somehow made whole. Every time your hand brushes mine, every time your breath warms my neck, it feels like the beginning of something I’ll never be ready to end. Our love is not loud; it doesn’t demand the world’s attention. It’s quiet, steady, and unshakable, like the tide gently pulling the shore closer to the sea.

Your scent lingers in the air long after you’re gone, wrapping around me like a memory too beautiful to forget. When you’re near, the world softens. The edges blur, and nothing else seems to matter but the way your touch feels against my skin. There’s an ache in loving you, a sweetness that borders on pain. It’s not the kind of love that asks for permission; it simply takes hold, unrelenting and pure.

Tonight, as the stars press close and the world fades to black, I feel your lips against mine. The moment is simple and perfect...not because it’s flawless, but because it’s ours. Your hands find me in the dark, tracing the edges of who I am, grounding me in the only truth I’ve ever known: that I belong to you.

In this quiet, we are free...free to love without fear, without judgment. The world may not understand, but here, wrapped in the stillness of the night, there’s nothing to explain. Love, I’ve learned, doesn’t always come with grand gestures or perfect timing. Sometimes, it’s found in the way your heart beats in time with mine, in the way your arms feel like home.

This is what love looks like...not perfect, but real. And as the night holds us close, I know this is where I’m meant to be. With you. Always with you.