while we laid on the cold floor, you cradled

my head against your chest. i heard your pulse

swaying to the tempo of the ballad

playing on the radio. my hands throbbed like

the bumblebee trapped in the room, anxious

from the dissonance of our frequencies.

i watched it race around for attention

and understood: i want to be adored

or despised, never ignored the way you

didn't notice the bug or my buzzing heart.