i’m lonely
but i’m not alone.
there are people.
there is love.
but they don’t see
the place in me
that’s gone quiet.

i laugh
but i don’t feel lighter.
i sleep
but i don’t wake up whole.

i miss myself.
i think she left
in the middle of a sentence,
mid-song,
mid-smile.

and now i carry
someone who looks like me,
talks like me,
but doesn’t feel
like home.