In every hello,
Every coffee date,
Every awkward new hug
Or handshake,
I search
For your autumnal smile,
Your thick accent,
A familiar embrace—

And then the haunting  
Fear
Rushes in;
I remember
Exactly
Why you’re a ghost
And not a lover.

I close my eyes
And yearn to forget you,
Let your spectre
Burn
To ash