The humid air embraces us like a soft blanket. We sit inches apart with books in our hands quietly studying the words before us. Your cat crawls across me and we steal glimpses at each other. The air feels warmer, more enchanting. I can hear your breathing change when you reach a particularly interesting part in your book. I look up to see you smiling, your dark hair falling slightly out of your hat. This is the first time I have seen you still, at peace, since we had broken up. I continue my book. Soon, it is time to go. We hug and suddenly, overwhelmed by the familiarity, the certainty, I kiss you. You do not kiss back. The spell is broken.

She thought that she woke in the morning
To a world that was filled with dread,
Though nothing was changed, or rearranged
Her lover was surely dead.
He’d gone to drive in a shady lane
And said he’d be back by three,
A phone call brought her a wealth of pain,
His car crashed into a tree.

And all the lights in the world went out
For even the sun was dim,
Her love was grey, for a day away
Her life had revolved round him.
Never again would she see him smile,
Or feel the thrill of his touch,
Or roll and play in the barnyard hay
When she cried and sighed, ‘Too much!’

But there in the darkness of her room
His phantom seemed to appear,
His face showed care as he stroked her hair,
‘You know that I love you, dear.’
Her tears were like a river that flows
As she tossed and turned in the gloom,
‘I never thought you would leave me here
To seek your rest in a tomb.’

And then she heard the jangle of keys
As she woke, and her eyes were wide,
He said, ‘I thought I would let you sleep
While I went out for a ride.’
She leapt on him and she pulled him down
To the warm, soft quilt on the bed,
‘The only ride you can take, is me,
My God! I dreamt you were dead!’

David Lewis Paget

i never liked the number six
until you came along.
with your ****** minivan full of empty energy
and 9:30 “i’m here"s
at a faded memory
i told you that night i wanted to jump off a bridge
i told you that i didn’t want to be alive anymore
i told you things that i never thought would’ve come out if not already said
i never liked the number six
for some reason unknown
it made me shake.
but you opened up something in me
that i can’t quite explain
"if i need to, i will”
if i need to get starbucks i will
if i need to babble i will
if i need to, if i need to, if i need to.
and the car ride from that coffee shop seemed as if we were traveling at the speed of light.
i didn’t want it to end
i didn’t want my /life/ to end
“if i need to, i will”
i was never fond of the number six
but i was always fond
of you

wander
about the clouds
the sun
the moon
and the stars
because they will
prove to you
the greatness of your being
they will persuade you
to accept and pledge
that you really are magnificent.
trust what they show you
for
the clouds
the sun
the moon
and the stars
see everything
and tell us nothing
but the truth

here they love you
and here you are safe

I've written a thousand words
I've dreamt a thousand dreams
Oh, how bleak
Oh, the dread
Of knowing what to say
And saying what you know
To only be misread
Not knowing how to show

I've decayed to my bones
I've rotted to my roots
Oh, this death
Oh, my brain
From being who you are
And showing my whole core
To only be misread
Not knowing what it's for.