When the gentle ridges in his lips
would part for me,

++++++++++++++++++++++

and the pretty valleys in his eyes
would wash his misery for me,

++++++++++++++++++++++

and the coral in his cheeks
would twitch twice for me,

++++++++++++++++++++++

and his living hands
would unsmother my words for me,

++++++++++++++++++++++

he whispered that his name
was Navy.

++++++++++++++++++++++

I wanted to walk next to him,
and breathe next to him,
and unsmother him back,

++++++++++++++++++++++

so I stayed
and let my fingers
braid into his grasp.

++++++++++++++++++++++

I gazed with him
at the fleeing rivers.

++++++++++++++++++++++

I lived with him
in his bending arms.

++++++++++++++++++++++

I think of him now
as his hands
that he warmed
with my own.

++++++++++++++++++++++

When the peaks in my mouth
would part for him,
I knew I loved him too,
and whispered my name.