And if I could keep loving you in misery or be happy on my own,
I'd rather be alone.

We don't mention the monsters in the closet.
We don't talk to our imaginary friends.
Just because we don't acknowledge what we shouldn't,
Doesn't mean that they were never really there.

Keep it to yourself,
Reality is now.
Keep it to yourself,
For creativity is the modern day insanity.

Don't believe in things that aren't allowed to exist.
Even your own two eyes can lie sometimes.
Am I allowed to exist?
Can you believe in me?
Do you believe in me, baby?

We don't mention the monsters in the closet.
We don't talk to our imaginary friends.
Just because we don't acknowledge what we shouldn't,
Doesn't mean that they were never really there.

What have you seen?
What part of your soul did you shut down today?
Don't you think it's more insane to ignore what is glaringly true
Than to feign a logical existence?

There's more to the picture,
Some missing piece to the puzzle of reality.
Growing up is growing old.
Don't die with your childhood.

Keep it to yourself,
Reality is now.
Keep it to yourself,
For creativity is the modern day insanity.

Maybe I've been mistaking red for pink.
Maybe I'm not as safe as I think.
I think I better stay in my bed.
I think maybe, oh baby, you want me dead.

Baby you petrify me.
Preserve my soul so I'll never die, please?
Nobody will ever find me.
Sweetie, I swear I'll never leave.

Only you see who I am.
You love me as hard as you possibly can.
Only I know who you are.
You wished for true love on a shooting star.

I promise I'll be happy in time.
I promise I'll get used to calling you mine.
Darling, you're losing control.
Get a grip on your mind or you'll swallow me whole!

You know I'll never try that again.
I'll be here in your arms 'til the bittersweet end.
You'll have to take precautions of course,
Clip my feathers to ensure I'm yours.

Honey, it's clear I'm yours alone.
I wait for hours each day until you get home.
Don't you see I'm better alive?
This love will be perfect if you let me survive.

Do not fall for these sweet illusions,
They're just a symptom of your confusion --
The hazy smog of your mind's pollution.
Believing it is not the solution.

Nobody knows the real you.
No one can ever see.
And all those who try to reveal you
Will surely fail -- undoubtedly.

They love the you they think they know,
Adore the one you're not.
They're grasping mere mirages though,
You'll never be the one they want!

And though he makes you want to sing,
Please do not be fooled --
For if he did know everything,
His "passion" would be cooled.

I wanted to love you,
But I never got the chance.
You played off my affections
As if what we had was happenstance.

We were never going to be amazing,
But we sure could've been good.
Amongst subtle touches and star-gazing
Lied the words I wished to say but never would.

And I've been told by friend and foe alike
That I can't blame myself for your reluctant heart.
Though, if I could just break this wretched cycle,
Maybe we could've avoided this from the start.

But it's what I do - I trip and stumble,
And all my strategically-placed walls begin to crumble,
As I fool myself into believing
That girls like me can end up with boys like you.

And as much as I hate to admit,
I know my soul is that of a poet,
So that loneliness will surely be my destiny -
Though I pray my tired heart may forego it.

But fate is a demanding thing,
And even the most minuscule chance at love
Will be dutifully executed in a timely manner,
While the cosmic audience nods in approval from above.

There is no experience in the world
      that I cherish more
            than hearing my father play the piano.

It's imperfect and beautiful and
                                                       sounds
                                                          ­     like
                                                            ­      home.

The notes are often choppy, and there are pauses
      as his mind turns over what keys to play next --
            sort of like our lives as a family.

We're awkward
      and have
            broken             periods,
but altogether we're making music.

Every breath a note,
      every laugh a chord,
every      "I love you"      a harmony
            that
only our family
      can hear.

And there's staccato! arguments,

and there's fortissimo days with pianissimo nights,

and there's repeat on repeat on repeat,
      making our lives seem
      constantly       andante.

But life is like a series of randomly placed fermatas --
unpredictable, yet musically enriched because of it.

            And I wouldn't want it any other way.

This is for every single night
That the world just seems so black & white
And I'm not there to quiet
The voices rushing through your tired mind

When the box you live in
Begins to box you in
And the person in the mirror
Is a stranger to the one under your skin

Please know wherever I may be
It'll always be you & me --
Lonely freaks on distant streets
Remembering the days we used to be free

Free from the impending death
Of our ever deteriorating heads --
Up all night in our oversized beds
Dreaming of things that hadn't happened yet

Fighting over nothing at all
But always there when the other would fall
Busting down each other's walls
To show our fears were oh-so-small

And I know I've gone away
Left you high and dry
But promise me you won't forget
That we are under the same sky
Looking at the same stars every single night --
The world's not so black & white --
Please just hold onto your life
Until I'm there again to turn your darkness into light,
*And know I love you, sister of mine