A month,
A year,
I can wait.

It doesn't take a toll,
It can't,
In comparison.

I've waited so long,
To be held in your arms.
I've waited for so long
To be yours,
Keeping your memory
A burning secret,
Imprinted in the flesh of the back of my brain.

Like ink scarred into skin,
You lasted longer
Than anything else would.

And I tried to get over it,
Move on from a crush unrequited,
But who am I kidding?

I was never the type of person
To crush on anyone at all.

I loved you
From day one.

So I waited for you,
Three years,
And then seven.

And finally,
After eleven years,
I can whisper
"I love you,"
And the sweetness in your voice
Will say it back,
And you are honeysuckle in the summer,
And crunching leaves in the fall,
And apple cider in winter,
And the promise of renewal in spring.

You are all things,
Waiting on the promise
Of the season to change,
And the change in me.

I've waited so long,
Knowing that you're mine,
I can now wait
As long as necessary
To hold you in my arms,
Each and every night.

As long as you
Are
Mine.