She stands in the shower.
Running her wash cloth across
Her body.
the slow rise of *******,
the arch of hips,
the curve of a neck.
The day she's had
Swirls around the drain
Between the space of her toes.
All that's left is the smell of soap.
Against her skin.
Her washcloth is not as white as it was.
She lets out a sigh.
Letting the hot water crash
Against her body.
Ringing it out before 
Soaping up the rag again.
Her body becoming softer.
Erasing every touch, every stare
That isn't her own.
Vigorously scrubbing.
The remnants of soap drip
Down her legs.
I knock on the door before
Poking my head in to check on
Her.
She hangs her head out with a smile.
The smell of soap and water
Glisten off of her light skin.
Before she closes the curtain back,
I ask if she needs help washing her
Back

the piano plays a song, sublime:
i believe it is a hateful crime -
to remind someone of a battle lost
fighting for a love, that was out of time.

Take the scissors,  
And cut around the edges of my heart.  
Don't worry about how it looks.  
Fold whatever part of me  
That you need to make the first cut.  
I'd be surprised if you find any part  
Of me that's folded neat.  
The kaleidoscope of construction  
Paper that is me.  
  
I consider myself a collection  
Of scars and different colors—  
Of the things that I like and dislike.  
Even the wrinkled pieces of myself  
I've forgotten about.  
You've brought light to those pieces  
With each snip of your scissors.  
I've noticed how quiet and content  
You've become.  
  
You cut, and I bleed in color—  
Purple, blue, and yellow.  
Of all the shapes you've cut,  
None of them are painful.  
Watching you mix up the different color pieces of my soul,  
Your love, the stick glue that  
Gives these pieces more functionality.  
  
I breathe easier, knowing that you're here.
No longer restricted  
By stagnant stillness.  
You can even fold them into an  
Airplane and sail across the room.  
I haven’t had this much fun  
In a long time.
Don't forget the scrap pieces

You're beside me,  
And everything is fine.  
It doesn't really matter  
What we do outside of this.  

I ask what you want to watch,  
Scrolling through my DVDs.  
You smile and point,  
Even if it's something I don't want  
To watch. I watch because it's an extension  
Of you.  

Knowing me, I'll pick something  
Stupid that'll make us laugh.  
When the screen flickers,  
You light up.  
We laugh and we talk,  
Catching everything that makes  
It interesting.  

Most of the time,  
I only laugh because you're laughing.  
You really don't know how beautiful  
Your smile is.  
Even when the movie is over,  
The taste of your lips  
Makes it worthwhile.  
Just this, being with you.  
It's not about the movie at all.  
The DVD may spin,  
The world may swirl around,  
But beside you, time stands still.

Say I love you, Ms. T
Willing am I, to change
And expand my range
But I will change only my behaviour
Not my nature
For you, can I be silent
Become less brutally honest
Speak more softly
Walk more slowly
Keep some distance
Be less tense
Irrespective of the situation
Give you more attention
Even go to jail if required
As long as the cause is good!

Say I love you, Ms. T
With you, will I always be
Loyal to the tee
Through sunny and rainy days
Even if I never get my way
Your secrets, will I keep forever
For you, deeply will I care
However, never will I be overprotective
No matter what, will I do my best to stay positive
After all, are we a team
And you make me beam!!

Say I love you, Ms. T
So much fun, can we have
And so much, can I give
A night out at Elliot's Beach
Swapping tales at lunch
While I savour a Beef Biryani
Writing poems about each other
Listening to Harris Jayaraj songs together
Dissing the central government
Getting into a Harry Potter related argument
Travelling in a "toy train"
Dancing in the Chennai rain
The list will be endless
And will I make sure, nothing you miss!!

Say I love you, Ms. Y
If you love me back
I swear I will always have your back
Because, are you my world
And it is your hand I will forever hold
If not, then thank you for this beautiful opportunity
To write yet another piece of romantic poetry!!

I brought a ticket to come and see you
Today. When I looked at the print,
I realized that it was a one-way,
With a layover in your thoughts.
Truth be told, I didn’t mind at all.
The tickets for all the other flights
Were weeks, even months out,
I paid more because I really wanted
to get there.
The ticket being nonrefundable
Made the trip that much enjoyable
Despite popular belief.
I didn’t go too much on the reviews.
Very rarely do you see one that tells
The entire truth, there is always something
Wrong. Whether it’s the seat, someone telling you
don’t drink the water, or the towels.
It’s always the towels or the sheets, for some
Odd reason.
I don’t mind a bit of turbulence.
When I got on the plane, I noticed that it wasn’t
as clean as I expected,
But it was cool. It wasn’t something
To just get upset and cancel the whole trip over.
Judging by the reviews, it’s easy to forget
That were all human. Sometimes things happen.
I leaned back in my seat and remembered that I had
Forgotten something.
I unclicked my seat belt and checked my pockets.
Nothing.
Although I am sure that I’ll arrive safely,
I’ll replace the kiss that you gave me
The last time I saw you, soon as I step off
The plane with a new one from you

We collide like thunder.
Wrapped in your indigo skin,
Wrapped in your warmth,
Fingers dig through the ache
Of wanting more.
Coiled tight,
Clinching,
An reaction of skin
pressed against skin.
I wear your shadow.
Thick in your sweat.
Like lightening you stretch.
Your breath rises,
In search of something to devour.
Again we collide.
Striking the gap
of emptiness between us.
Your eyes searching me.
The primal urge
to connect.
Still searching.
Still craving.
Marking where we lay,
Until the next storm

What if I love you, Ms. V?
It will make me shine like the Sun
Never again, will I be alone
My heart will beat at the speed of an aeroplane
Like a top, will my brain spin
Like a flower, will my face bloom
And from ear to ear, will I beam!

What if I love you, Ms. V?
Talk for hours and hours, we can
About any topic under the Sun
Be it Harris Jayaraj music
Or Indian or international politics
Or chicken vs mutton
Or travelling in trains
And can I go on and on
Trust me, never will I get bored
Of course, neither will you get bored
I will make sure of that
No matter what!!

What if I love you, Ms. V?
A shoulder for you to cry on, will I be
With anything and everything, can you trust me
I keep secrets
As well as Hercule Poirot connects the dots
In any Agatha Christie ****** mystery
And never will I be in a hurry
So, you can take your own sweet time to open up
Or for that matter, can you yap and yap
And I won't mind a bit
After all, every single relationship requires a lot of effort!!

What If I love you, Ms. V?
For you, am I ready to change anything
To ensure you keep smiling
Just not my character or nature, of course
To do anything for you, am I not averse
Just not anything unethical or immoral, of course
I will be there for you on your best days
And of course on your worst days
After all, love doesn't come without its share of pain
And as we all know, there is no gain without pain!!

What if I love you, Ms. V?
Definitely, will it change my life
If you are to become my wife
But yes, not so soon of course
To deciding anything in a hurry, am I averse
I will give you all the time and space you need
It's part of love, will I add!!

What if I love you, Ms. V?
Well, I hope you will love me back
If yes, then will my life be free from anything and everything dark
I will be one of the happiest people in the world
Even all the gold in the world
Cannot give me THAT feeling
Because, to me do YOU mean EVERYTHING
If no, then thank you for giving me the opportunity
To write this piece of poetry!!

Eons from now we'll see
iridescent auroras swirling
unknown stars and planets
we fly to a place that exists
between night and day.

We'll sip drinks
made from liquid stardust
sunlight and moonbeams
frozen by angel tears.
We'll laugh with beings
whose smiling faces
illuminate those black holes.

In another galaxy with you
everything is uplifted.
Hold my hand and walk with me
as millions of stars form a corridor
little twinklings all around
toward a podium of stars.