ONCE their eyes met, all of his insecurities clashed with the inevitability of the moment. There they stood in isolated silence;  TWO hearts beating to the synchronized rhythm of destiny’s drum. With TRES, Leche cake in hand, he gestured for her company. FOUR hours into the reception, he’d mustered enough courage to initiate conversation. She was only 5’6, but what she lacked in height, she compensated in beauty. AFTER SEVEN played softy throughout the reception hall as families gathered at round tables and ATE from overpriced plates. NINE small steps brought them closer together. He admired her breathlessly; she was a DIME.

Out of the blue...she called.
Next weekend... after dinner...she dies!
Scratch. Scratch. one more number... ****.
If you want to live hide.
Searching for words, she whispered... maybe.
My stomach churned. Gas. I thought.
Catch me outside! How bout that!
Whats the worst that can... boom!
Number in hand, he chanced.  Hello?
Four minutes earlier, he was alive.
Hold on! Don't die! honey? honey!
Woke up in a cab, naked.

What time is it? 10am. Sh*!
What day is it? Final Exams.
Driving through campus, my car stalled.

Honey, we gonna need a bigger house.
Nervously, he hit stage and stared.
Grabbing for popcorn, their hands met.
Washing laundry, she discovered  lipstick stains
He mentioned love, but meant lust.
You may kiss your bride. Ribbit!
3,2,1. buckets Good. Overtime!
Phone rings! Who's calling? Veronica? Decline.
Losing consciousness. She whispered. I cheated.
Let me check your phone! Nope!
Paternity results: It's none of you.

Ain ’t no looking back for me
     I feel trapped
Lost in a whirlwind
     Can’t adapt
Boots placed against my neck
   I can’t breathe
Shackles dragging from my feet
   I can’t leave
Hands up don’t shoot
   I’m unarmed
Pray my children wake to see
   Me unharmed
America the beautiful
   The land’s torn
Pray for the night to end
   Bring the morn.

My curiosity
an insatiable itch
Wating to scratch the surface
To reveal your inner mystery
We lie naked
Exposed to the perils of
Forbidden love
A messy bed of emotion
The most comfortable
Of sleep.

What to do when
        “I do”
Turns into
             I don’t
When “I will”
Changes to
     I won’t.

When better
        shifts to worse
And the gift of love
              ends in curses
When intimacy
      Goes astray
And it seems love
      has finally run It’s race
Only to finish
       Dead
     ***
Last

And the thrill has
                      passed
When your truths
Ain’t so
   And the love
         Don’t flow
And the vibe is
     No mo’

You must let go.

I woke up
Eye to eye
Face to face
With a stranger.
She was a hard reminder of my past
A promise of my future
As she greeted me with a kiss
She whispered her name.
“Today.”

Clasping to her words
       like vines of wild ivy desperately soaking in          
        the inner beauty
That shes conceals within.

a single reply
    takes the air from an empty room.

Her presence: the weightlessness of floating hearts.

We defy gravity  
through stanzas
Every line convicts
Me of passionate crime
Every syllable is a life
sentence.

Unraveling her
        inner mystery
     Is my dark muse.
beautiful.
     intoxicating.
Our reality
     complicated.