People have seemed so dull, lately.
My life not feeling quite full, lately.
Lonely, but surrounded by friends, lately.
Listening to your favorite songs again, lately.
It's been cold, then really hot, lately.
I've been missing you a lot, lately.

I've been remembering my dreams, lately.
Contemplating what that means, lately.
Wanting to visit you at school, lately.
Been feeling kind of like a fool, lately.
I feel like I've hit a wall, lately.
Wishing I could just call, lately.

I've been drinking like you did, lately.
Avoiding more than I'd like to admit, lately.
There's a piece missing in my life, lately.
No one seems to fit just right, lately.
Busy, you shouldn't be on my mind, lately.
But you're the only happiness I find, lately.
I wish I could lie next to you again, lately.
I wish I had been a better friend, lately.

Sometimes there's a pain in your stomach
And you can't tell whether you ate too much
Or you're just missing her.
How could you have forgotten
For most of the day
That she was gone
Only to remember now.

There are moments when the world moves fast;
My heart beats out of my chest.
My brain runs, skips, jumps, will not quit,
And I can’t tell if I want out of it.
All things are here, all things are now.
I seem supremely aware without knowing how
To the sight of the trees
The sound of the leaves
The touch of inspiration
The taste of creation
I must have been complete before
But now I am something more.
Going forth with such power
Now is my hour!
But what torture if it lasts that long,
Because this clarity of which I am so fond
Can be so draining.
Even causing pain when
Leaving me again,
I become whole
But feel anything but full.

There are moments when the world spins slow;
My eyes droop, as if to lead my head,
And the most involving things
Seem distant instead.
I’m here, but I’m not
For part of me is removed.
Where it is, in time or in space,
I can’t begin to tell you.
Perhaps part of me leaves
To some intangible land.
My spirit learns what it needs,
Then returns to its host, the man.
Or perhaps, the mind can’t help but take a rest
Not afforded by dream or reverie.
So it escapes the world and its mess
To a nothingness far more clean.
Or, it could be for no reason at all
That I seem to lose half of my soul.
All I gain from it
Is appreciation of when I am whole.

Two steps forwards, one step back,
Keep fighting your next self-attack.
And it’s not that I want you back,
Just want you in my life, to be exact.
I want you to know: I got your back.
If you want, we can leave it at that.

She said the words.
*******, why?
Until that point we were
Doing just fine.
But she said those three words,
With a look in her eye
That showed me that
This was no lie.

Now we aren’t fine.
She crossed a line
I didn’t even know was there.
There was no sign stating “Beware,”
So how could I judge her forgoing there.
I guess for me,
It’s just so rare
That I feel that I actually care
Enough to share
Those three words,
That I just heard.

Now, I’ll admit I’m scared.
What if I don’t agree
And not just for the time being.
What if it’s just not in me?
I know that’s her fear.
That I’ll never repeat it back
That she’ll never get to hear
These words, for there is something I lack,
Some emptiness inside,
Some surplus of pride,
Some instinct to run and hide.

Maybe she’ll run first
To avoid the worst
So my heart has no chance
To break hers.

I hope that she won’t
I hope she hopes
There’s love enough for us both
In her
At least until I’m ready
To take my turn
Until I learn
To love in return.

I hope she won’t hide
Because I don’t know how hard I’ll seek
But I know that those three words
Were good for me.

Why?
Not because I’m that great of a guy.
But because as far as girls go,
She’s one of a kind.

Do I even like you?
What a ******* question.
But for some reason,
It seems relevant
To me on this occasion.
I can’t think of a thing you’ve done
Other than to run.
Seems the odds of whether
You’ll disappoint
Are worse than if I
Were to flip a coin.

So do I even like you?
It’s not rhetorical
When I ask the question,
I want the answer in full.
I can’t decide to whom I ask.
Except that I’d like the answer
Fast enough to make a difference,
Now that I wonder “Why?”
I let myself get this far in the rhyme.