It's funny how heartbreak can make me appreciate you even more.
It's as if you have permanently inked every moment a tear fell,
every time our lips touched and refused to part,
every heartfelt word that came from within
onto my soul.

My first true love,
my first true heartbreak.
I knew I had mature emotions at a young age,
and always wondered if I would ever meet the man most deserving.

To my surprise, you were the chosen one.
And to ours, you were the abuser.
The one who misused them,
trampled over them with ease.

I do not believe you are aware of the damage.
And I do not believe that if I even bothered to pour
my heart once more you'd understand.
You were given several opportunities to walk
a mile or two in my shoes.
But you swore there was no need because
you could already feel me.
You passed that up with no problem of passing me.

I slowly slipped away
without you realizing.
Fading into the background of what was once
our masterpiece.
My absence should never be the reason why
you give me the time of day.
You always had a bad habit
of coming around too late anyway.
*51614

Love not forgotten, just placed on the back burner.
And one is reminded of a photograph with past lovers.

It never took much for you to make me weak.
The loving you gave sent chills down my spine,
made my soul do cartwheels,
and made my heart do back flips.
You felt the same. I know because I felt my energy
dance on your heart, and I could tell
when it got down to your bones.
I took the kinks out of your soul
and made life a smoother ride.
We were breaths of fresh air we both needed,
and we gave our spirits what they yearned for.

Ice cold winds beating against our faces.
Laughter so joyous it brought about permanent smiles.
You were contagious in the best way possible.
On the cloudiest day, the sun decided to break through
and make an appearance when we got closer to his space.
Knowing that you were the brightest star
that afternoon and he could never compare to you.
Gazing at each other and saying "I love you"
is what we did best that day. Moving my hands
so my fingers intertwined with yours,
with intentions of never letting go.
Placing kisses exactly where they belonged.
And our reciprocal love filled the air
Everyone could feel it. All eyes were on us.

Now we are strangers in different locations,
with hearts in different races
and minds in different places.
And we are left with a photograph
containing a love that ignited a fire in me
to create poetry.
*4514

I still can't wrap my mind around the fact
that our bond is no longer as strong as it used to be.
To hell and back, we went.
And you chose to stay down there.
I knew you would rise above your demons.
But they convinced you to stay with those
persuasive words of theirs.
Your demons helped shape a falsehood
that soon became your truth.
They wanted to push us away
from each other. It seems you did, too.
I will never understand how you let
the negative you always avoided into your life.
You are much better than this.
I've lost hope in you rising above
this "phase" you are in.
And maybe one day you will.
Maybe one day you will search your
now festered soul and find that that is not
how you want it to be.
What I do know is that one day,
further down the path you travel,
you will realize that those demons
only wanted to break you down.
I wish you the best although there is
disappointment in you still in my heart.
And to a bond that once weathered
every storm encountered,
may you regain your strength.
*32114