I am hiding under a sheet
like a child on Halloween
as always, you cut to the chase
everything I am is before you
pages of a tattered book
that you know oh so well
rustle in the warm breeze
hopping from one
leaf to the next

if I was a tree, my arms
stretched and growing
in all directions
you’d come to me
and pull away my bark
just to find out more
your insatiable curiosity
comes at a terrible price
in exchange for my life
you want a place within it
forged by your own two hands
blackened with soot
like that one long moment
when I put my glasses on
wide-eyed recognition
of the position you hold
with such sweet relish
those eyes tell me so much
fixated on the horizon
I can’t help but look back

you’re in too deep now
a part of you swims through
my bloodstream and
enjoys the ride every time
my heart beats