rich with the depth
and intensity
of oxidized blood,
a plushness caresses my bare skin.

my fingers tracing against the grain of the fabric
slowly seducing
as the canvas
becomes duo chrome
the tip of my finger
a nymph
cunning and artful

the strokes
offering an insatiable
thirst
yet so in control

finally it succumbs
turning a tide of new color
permeating from where my touch once was
a culmination of sorts
leaving you enamored.

It's hard
when my fingers yearn for the rough of your skin
I imagine my arms extending like branches on a willow
twisting and turning on street corners
to make it to you
for one last touch

It's hard
when the cold encompasses my back
facing the empty dark
and holds me still
I imagine your head buried into the nook of my neck
your heart's slow beats pounding against me as you sleep
as I wiggle under your heavy arms

It's hard
when the blinding light pierces through my eyes
as i try to regain consciousness
only to turn to my side
and see the pillow untouched
the crinkles exactly how they'd been left the night before
I imagine waking up to you pulling me closer
as if the waves carried me away in the night
waking up to your scrunched up nose and tired eyes
leaning in for a kiss
that never materializes.

The bugs in my head won't go away,
They've taken up permenant residence in my brain,
I can feel them at the nape of my neck -
they're crawling deeper into me,
Eating away,
Eroding my mind.
If they insist on staying
I hope the memory of you is the first to go.

I've let you close enough
To see the whites of my eyes,
Taste the bittersweet of my words,
Close enough to smell
The sweet of my breathe,
Feel the delicate shudder of my body
Under your oversized hands,
Hear the quiver in my low voice
And I'm left with nothing to say
but
"Come closer."