I remember your nervous doe-eyes
and uncertain grasps
like a new shriveled-pink baby
engulfed and overwhelmed
by the palpability of a realm
outside the womb

The canary of your hair
melded with the sand of your skin
and the rose of your lips
****** into an anxious
façade of a smile

It was as if
the contortion of your lips
was stenciled onto your taut canvas face
by a neglectful artist
and you wore the mar acquiescently
like a sketch unfinished

And I remember
kissing that imperfect smile
and being stricken by a heavy melancholy
that descended from my lips
to my chest
where it burrowed inexorably

Your limp hand fell from mine
and as my chest constricted
like a reptilian death penalty
I understood your nearly-smile