If you look at me
through
that view
finder
I wonder
what do you see?

- l.w.

I like you.
I think I’ve liked you since the first time I saw you.
Don’t get me wrong, though. I don’t love you.
Saying I love you would be silly.
I don’t know you that well.
I just know your name.
And the course you’re taking.
Who your brother is.
What year you’re in.
So, you see? Saying I love you is preposterous.
But I like you.

I like you.
But my friends don’t.
They call you arrogant.
But I think you’re just confident.
I keep that information to myself, though.
I like you, but my friends don’t like you that much.
So I pretend that I don’t like you either.
That’s why when we see each other around campus I ignore you.
But please don’t think that I don’t like you.
Because I do.
I really do.
I’m not in love with you, though. Just so we’re clear.

I like you.
I like your eyes.
I like your wavy brown hair.
I always wonder what it would feel like to run my fingers through it.
I like your hands, especially your fingers.
Long and thin like a pianist’s.
I want to hold your hand and lace our fingers together.
I like your lips and the way they hint at a smile whenever you see me.
Or maybe that’s just my imagination. But still, I like your lips.
I’d like them even more if they’re pressed against mine.
Sorry, please ignore the line above this one.

I like you.
I know because my hear flutters every time I see you.
Sounds silly and cliché, I know. But it’s true.
You make me feel weird. But a good kind of weird.
I like you.
And I want to know more about you.
Like why take up engineering?
Why not accountancy like your brother?
I want to know you more.
Can you sing? Do you dance?
And why did you choose number 7 for you jersey number?
I’d like to get to know you. But I know it’s impossible.
Well, maybe not impossible, just outside the realm of probability.

I like you.
And I’m saying it here.
Because I can’t tell you. I can’t tell my friends.
But now I’m telling everybody.
I like you.
But I don’t love you.
Because you’re a stranger.
A beautiful stranger but a stranger nonetheless.
One day we’d see each other and maybe I’d smile.
Hopefully, you’ll smile back.
But until then, I’d be harboring these feelings of mine.
And I’ll watch you. And like you from the sidelines.

heavy bated breath
blood rushing to my cheeks
laughing as you laugh
captured when you speak

tingles down my spine
every touch laced with spark
flawed and yet so fine
everything about you leaves a mark

you're a mountain
high and mighty
doesn't bow
doesn't bend

you're the sky
vast and wide
no beginning
and no end

you're an ocean
calm and stormy
all consuming
ever rising

you're a forest
green and wild
pure enchantment
ever growing

you're a mine
gems and gold
you are mine
rare and precious

i don't really know you well.
i just see you now and then.
i like what i see when i look at you
and i like what i feel when i see you
you know how it goes.

i like you but i'll never tell.
i steal a glance when i can.
i like to say hi when i see you
but the words get stuck in my throat every time i try to.
you know how it goes.

you don't even know my name
you can't see me standing there
as you pass me by and i die inside
you don't even seem to notice
you know how it goes.

you probably don't feel the same
you probably don't even care
you may have not seen the signs
but if you did there're a lot you missed
you know how it goes.

It's not always sunny all the time
but even the storm is better with you by my side.

Cold August mornings
chairs scraping the floor
early birds singing
chalk marks on the board

Handsome older brother
studying next door
guitar bag on your shoulder
I haven't seen before
I'm looking out the window
as you walk by
did you see me, did you know?
I was trying to catch your eye

I remember that day so clearly
like it was yesterday's memory

Warm September afternoon
face painted devil red
I see you again, I almost swoon
there are horns in my head

singing like a choir
on the school's stage
it was the dawn
of a new age
you play your guitar
and I watched from afar

I remember it all but it's fading away
I wish I could find the words to make them stay

An hour past twelve
in the month of June
I had you for ten months
it all ended so soon

I sung Christmas carols
and you played your guitar
I watched you drive home
in your daddy's old car
I thought there was a chance
I thought there could be romance

I remember how foolish I'd been
falling so easily for your crooked grin

March was just ending
we were all in white
it's a new beginning
and we survive the fight

I wanted tell you
how I felt all those years
all the things left unsaid
and all of my tears
but we parted that morning
and I never said a thing

I remember the sadness and the regret
and that last year is a year that I won't forget

You're strong
you're a cup of coffee
in the morning.
You're rain
pouring
down my window pane

You're sweet
like goodbyes
bitter like
hellos
you're like a secret
everyone knows

you're ambition
and you're mine
but not really
not at all
you're a temporary high
and a constant fall

you're truth
but you lie
you're painful
like kisses
pleasure
like bruises

this could go on
because you're infinity
yet you're limited
you're forever
and yet my friend
you're also the end

We meet somewhere odd
or somewhere ordinary
it doesn't really matter
what matters is you and me
I don't know you yet
because we've never met
and you don't know me either
but hopefully you will in the future

I'm writing you this letter
and filling it with rhymes
I'm leaving it here
hope you'll find it in time
and when you do please look for me
I'll be waiting patiently

This is my hello
to the love I've yet to know

Round eyes
chiseled jaw
contagious laugh
perfect flaw
full lips
spiked up hair
you're my
disparate pair

You tried taking us down but you missed
I tried but I really can't put up with this

Your hair, your eyes
your face, your lies
your breathing
it's annoying me

you say you're sorry
it doesn't show
you tell your story
but we all know

it ain't true
so here's what we're gonna do

we'll turn on the black light
so they can see your stains
it's high time that I fight
and clear up my name
go and look pathetic for the rest of your days
but under the black light we all know that you're fake

you tried to fool us but it didn't work
and you tried seeking sympathy but it only got worse

you spin your lies
like you're spider
you twist the truth
just like a lawyer

but we know you now
and this is how it's gonna go down

we'll turn on the black light
so they can see your stains
it's high time that I fight
and clear up my name
go and try to make us look as bad as you could
but I assure you you'll miserable for good

tell me, tell me
what it means
when you kiss me
is it real?

tell me, tell me
is it true
when you told me
"I love you"?

or was it just
was it just
another one of your lies
because I can't see
through you, baby
no matter how hard I try

you're a wild card
a love machine without a heart
you're a day dream
and a nightmare that makes me scream
you're the light of day
the dark of night
I know it's wrong
but it feels so right

so tell me, tell me
what's going on inside
tell me, tell me
what's running through your mind

I lie in bed as they rattle
in my closet where they hide
under the bed where they live
inside my head where they thrive

they whisper, they talk
they mutter, they scream
they hunt me when I'm awake
they haunt me in my dreams

the skeletons threaten
to let themselves out
they say they'll tell people
what my fears are about

the monsters under the bed
now live inside my head
each one has a name
and they all drive me insane

then there's the voices
who sound bigger than me
they scare me the most
though they're the ones I can't see

they tell me I'm worthless
no matter what I do
I know that they're lying
but it just sounds so true

you have no friends they tell me
and I tell myself it's a lie
but I wonder now and then
when I perish, who will cry?

they say I'm better off alone
with this one I agree
because no matter what happens
I won't ever betray me.

I like you better with your glasses on and I
like you better, better when you didn't try
so hard to be noticed and to fit in with the crowd

I like you better when you act so shy and I
like you better when you didn't know how to lie
when you didn't know how to scar with words like you do now

I like you better yesterday and the day before
when you were still you, I liked you more

it's way past my bed time and
i blame you, you're keeping me up again

I used to care about what you think
I used to think that you care
but not anymore

I killed you in my mind
I stabbed you to death 37 times
I gouged your eyes out
shot an arrow through your mouth
I may seem violent
but I'm really calm right now

I killed you in my mind
ran you over with a bulldozer
put you through the wringer
and hang you dry
it may seem gruesome
but I'm laughing so hard I could cry

I killed you in mind
drove a knife through your heart
and right now I'm being kind
I whisper, "It's okay" as I tear you apart
you may think it's gory
but sorry, I'm not sorry.

a little bird found another
to share its lovely song
here i am with no one
though i've tried for so long
to find the missing piece
to the puzzle that's my heart
but i'm beginning to think
that there's no other part

a little bird found another
to share its woven nest
still my heart beats alone
just a thumping in my chest
there's a pair for a shoe
and a *** for the tea
can someone let me know
is there no one for me?

a little bird found the one
here i am, i have none
in all directions i have looked
but still i can't find
someone that would own me
and that i could call mine
i have sung, no one heard
pray tell me, where's my own little bird?

you waited for the moment
when everything felt right
and you've finally decided
that tonight is the night
maybe you bought her a rose
or chocolates, who knows?
you walk up to her doorstep
you knock her door
she opens it and smiles
like the other times before
your heart beats faster
but somehow you smile as well
her eyes twinkle like stars
indeed it's time, you can tell
but when the words escaped your lips
her eyes lost their shine
and her smile disappeared
when you told her, "Be mine."
She frowned and said, "I'm sorry."
and she need not say more
you know what's to come
you've been through this before
you force another smile
and say that it's fine
but it hurts just as much
as it did the first time

we're dead, we're dead
we're walking, talking, breathing
but we're dead
we're dead, we're dead
we're barely eating, barely sleeping
because we're dead

doors burst open
in they came
men and women
they did claim
shouts of pleasure
moans of pain
mounting pressure
end in silver stain
beads of salted water
on arched backs
heavy breathing
and heart attacks
all the secrets
that they hold
tonight will surface
and unfold

one day he'll come
and knock on your door
he'll take you away
now you don't have to
wonder like you did before
'cause it's your last day

you won't see it coming
there will be no warning
he will just take you away
you don't get to say "bye"
or "I love you" one last time
no he'll just take you away

you're still here today
but you could be gone tomorrow
he will just take you
when and where, he won't say
where and when, you won't know
no matter what you do

he'll come and get you
faster than the speed of light
he will take you away
you will have no clue
you won't even get to fight
he'll just take you away

you'll never be ready
you won't see him with your eyes
you'll never be ready
he will take you by surprise

Never think that that smile means he likes you
Never think that that wink means you look good today
Never think that that laugh means he wants you around
Don’t entertain such thoughts, you can’t afford to think that way

Because once you do, you start to fall
so never think about love at all

Or you’ll come out wounded and bruised
and you’ll feel broken, empty, and used
ignore the weak knees, the flutter of heart
ignore the butterflies, they’ll tear you apart
don’t be fooled, honey, it’s all a trap
and once you’re caught there’s no coming back

Never think that that hello means he missed you
Never think that that how are you means he cares
Never think that that look means he loves you too
Don’t let those things get to your head, honey don’t you dare

'Cause once they do, they'll poison your mind
you’ll be ecstatic for a while and then you’ll find

That you’ll come out wounded and bruised
and you’ll feel broken, empty, and used
ignore the weak knees, the flutter of heart
ignore the butterflies, they’ll tear you apart
don’t be fooled, honey, it’s all a trap
and once you’re caught there’s no coming back

All bad things are wrapped up like presents
but they turn out to be Pandora’s box
and they’ll shine bright like a diamonds
but one touch and it’ll turn to rocks

11:11 and fallen lashes
fountains, wells, and shootings stars
even my birthday wishes
crossing my fingers, and crossing my heart

You’re my wish, always has, always will be
just a kiss is enough to pacify me
seeing your face makes my heart burst
and it feels so good even though it hurts
you’re my wish, nothing more
just a kiss, that’s all I ask for

put your lips close to mine
and let's breathe in the same air
let's wait for the stars to shine
before we lay our cards bare
will you let me in your heart tonight?
answer me once the moon is bright
skin to skin, can we be any closer?
chest to chest, feel our hearts beat together
tingles start to rain down on my neck
sparks erupt from gentle little pecks
with your hands restrain my wrists
there's no need to wonder if it fits
as your edges match my curves
sparks start running through my nerves
I try my best to take it all
as you succeed to break my wall
and I'll watch you bask in glory
as I let you take and claim me

I was yours from the beginning
but you were never mine
I guess I should've seen it
should've read all the signs
I was there for you always
but you never were for me
I guess I should've noticed
but I was too blind to see
It's true there were no promises
no touch, no hugs, no kisses
but you should've known that I would fall
still you didn't try to catch me at all

After three, you should’ve struck out
but you’re coming back for the fourth time now
I thought I was going to make it home
without a scratch but you snuck up on me somehow

One split second was all it took
one smile and now I’m on your hook

Say my name and make me forget
the reason why I should forget you
Say my name and make me fall again
I guess you’re the one I’ll always come back to

One split second was all it took
now I’m never getting off your hook

you haunt my thoughts
you plague my dreams
you won't give a ****
if i tear at the seams