i have a recurring dream where im on a swing set and i reach up to the sky and your hand pulls me off of the seat and into some sort of paradise, where you love me again in that little green sundress you used to wear. in this world you kiss me in the morning and tell me the things that you’ll never whisper in my ear. here the grass tickles my knees and we dance in a world of twisted trees that allow only the littlest cues of light to dance across your face. sometimes you turn just right and the light melts your iris into a little pool that i’ve been dreaming of diving into for so long. you sneak your fragile fingers under the lacey straps adorning your shoulders and slip it down, then the other side, hypnotically holding your gaze against mine. you’re intimidatingly gentle in every calculated movement, waiting for my eyes to wander down your chest until the pretty little dress disappears into a pretty little heap, hidden between tall blades of the field. you run to the water unwavering in your belief that i will follow because i always follow you. how could i not? the water remains still when you dive in, unbothered by the presence of such ethereal energy. when you’re not coming up for air suddenly i can’t breathe and the pressure of the water’s embrace closes in around me until i see you, bubbling from the mouth with little laughs. wait, now let me explain that these little underwater chuckles propagate in my mind after i wake up in the morning.