Do you remember

Hiding in the closet

Our voices hushed

Just to spend some a few more seconds together




Do you remember

Sitting in the back

Of your dad’s old truck

Laughing away all our fears




Do you remember

Hands linked together

As we walked down the street

Coming home from the movies




Do you remember

When i was screaming into my pillow

Shaking with violent tears

But you don’t remember

Because you weren’t there


But I remember

When you were crying on that bench

Because they said you weren’t good enough

But you were more than I could ask for




Do you remember

When I first kissed you

But you moved away

Before I could say

I loved you

We saved the world. We threw the last bomb into the crowds of rotting bodies and decaying brains. We crossed one final street and shut the gates behind us. We were safe. Or so I thought.

We celebrated—a fleeting, fragile moment of peace. Amid the laughter and relief, all I could do was watch him. He was in the center of it all, embracing everyone who had gathered around him. Then, I saw it—a trickle of dark liquid seeping from his jacket.  

My heart stopped. My joy shattered into panic, and my lips quivered as I whispered in fear. The world has already been burned, and yet—burned even more as my body slowly shaken in agony.

“No. That can’t be. Oh God, no—please!”  

I ran to him, my hands trembling as I lifted his jacket. The truth was undeniable. It was there all along. He had been bitten.  

I froze, panic gripping my chest. I choked until I could not breathe anymore.

He didn’t speak a word. He didn’t have to. His eyes met mine, and I saw everything. He knew. He had known all along. He had insisted we go to Churchill Street first, pushing through the pain, enduring the wounds inflicted into his tired body. He wanted to make sure we were somewhere safe before it all happens. Somewhere where the night isn’t a nightmare
—and then turn into one of those lowly rotting bodies we used to aim our guns with.

“How dare you, Sid!” I choked on the words as tears streamed down my face. Before I could say more, he collapsed to the ground.  

“Can you sing me my favorite song?” he whispered, his voice soft and strained.  

I opened my mouth to protest, to beg, but his pleading gaze stopped me. I nodded, holding back sobs, and began.

“Beautiful, beautiful, beautiful  
Beautiful boy  
Beautiful, beautiful, beautiful  
Beautiful boy”

As I sang, he reached into his pocket and handed me a pair of eyeglasses I had been wanting for so long. They weren’t my usual prescription, but I took them, holding them to my chest as if they were a piece of him.  

I cupped his face and pressed my lips to his, tears mingling with our fleeting touch. Then I lay beside him on the cold ground, holding him close as I finished the song.

“Goodnight, Sid,” I whispered, my voice breaking. “See you in the morning.”  

He smiled, content, and mouthed the three words we used to say to each other before every battle.  

“Sleep now, my beautiful boy,” I said, my voice trembling with sorrow. I kissed his forehead and whispered a final prayer for him as his eyes slowly closed.

Sticky kiss so bittersweet
Happy lips will meet

I burn without a flame, I glow without a light,
I speak in silent whispers, and vanish with the night.
In one I’m soft, in two I soar,
In many, I can make hearts roar.

I stand within the darkness, yet never cast a shade,
I bind the soul in silence, though never am I made.
I carry no true body, yet fill the air with fire,
A fleeting touch, a fleeting wish, that never shall expire.

I am both bold and tender, a gift that can’t be seen,
I form with just a glance, and fade where I have been.
I dwell where time stands still, and yet, I freely flow,
A secret shared between us—do you know where I go?

Sweet moment of bliss
In the quiet night
Kissing under the moonlight
Two souls become intertwined
Lost in a tender kiss.

She came, a scent upon the air,  
Her lips, like honey, pure and rare  
A sweetness that the world had lost,  
Now found in her—at any cost.  
Her eyes, twin flames in velvet night,  
Winked, and my soul took sudden flight
A bird unbound, a heart unchained,  
To seek the love that once remained.  

Her gaze, a magnet, quiet, deep,  
Drew forth the secrets I would keep,  
It pulled my heart, a trembling thread,  
And in its path, my soul was led.  
In every glance, a universe,  
A love unspoken, soft, immersed,  
She tore my heart to fragile strips  
Each one a kiss upon her lips.  

I gave her all, yet nothing showed,  
A path of thorns, where roses flowed
For in her eyes, the fire grew,  
A blaze that burned the old me through.  
The fire of love, the fire of pain,  
The fire that breaks, yet makes again.  

She took the pieces, scattered wide,  
Each one a prayer, each one a guide,  
Her hands, like angels, softly pulled  
My broken heart, and made it whole.  
In her, I found the sacred flame,  
In her, my soul was known by name.  

And though I wander, lost and free,  
Her gaze will call, and there I’ll be  
A lover bound by her sweet grace,  
Forever lost in her embrace.