I could say that I like art
But what I'd mean to say is
I like how it makes me feel
I like when it appeals to my own aesthetic
Or makes me see through someone else's eyes
I like that I don’t have to necessarily understand a piece to enjoy it
I like how looking at a photograph can take you back to a memory
Or how a film can make you feel empathy for someone you’ve never even met.

It's simple to say that I like music
But what I’d mean by that is
I like how it makes me feel
I like that a good beat can leave my feet uncontrollably
Tap, tap, tapping
And a soulful lyric can leave my heart dizzy for days
or how a good, solid forte piano can bring me to the edge of my seat
I like that an arrangement of notes can make me long for a place I’ve never been
or that feeling I get when I hear my favorite song come on at the store

It'd be safe to assume that I can say I like dance
But what I actually mean is that
I like how it makes me feel
How the delicate motion of someone else’s body set to music can move me to tears  
and when the beat of the music travels through my own limbs like an electric current
when it leaves me out of breath
or how positively free I feel when I'm dancing alone to Beyoncé in my underwear

It wouldn’t be too far of a stretch for someone to maybe possibly say that there's an itty bitty sliver of a chance that
I like you
I mean
I like how you make me feel
Like my whole body is on fire and I’m caught in a rainstorm
like my stomach is full of ants but it’s okay because I’m an anteater
Like a little kid who lost his mom at the store but somehow found the candy isle
Like I’d spend a whole day just trying to make you laugh

I like that art, music, and dance make me think of you
and that that’s all I’m left to think about
art, music, dance
and you

I want to find out what you love
I want to see your face light up
when your favorite song comes on
I want to watch the music carry you away
I want to catch your eye
while you're dancing halfway across the room
shouting lyrics that I've never heard before
but will hear again and again
when I replay this moment in my head

I want to be who you love
I want to see your face light up
when our favorite song comes on
I want to carry you away
I want to look into your eyes
while we're dancing across the room
cooing lyrics I've heard a thousand times
and will hear a thousand more
when we wake up tomorrow and play it again

B
as in baby
as in babe
as in I adore you
as in be mine forever
as in maybe just till tomorrow
as in not anymore
as in strangers
as in strange
as in
S

You've invaded my dreams.
You've built a home in my subconscious.
How I wish this were a romantic gesture,
As if to say
"I cannot even dream a world without you"
On the contrary, these are no visions of lust or adoration
but of spite
and dismay.
You've become my nightmare.
The mental image of you strikes fear into my bones,
wakes me up from my sleep
in a puddle of sweat
and because it is a dream
no matter how fast I run,
how hard I hit,
how loud I yell,
you're inescapable.
So I beg of you
Please, please
Leave the haunting to the ghosts.

Wake up!
Open your eyes
draw back the curtains

In the darkness
no one can hear you dream.