Happened So Fast

Side by side we stroll cobbled streets, fumbling together conversation.

We trace over old topics, staying safe in the familiar, keeping cautious with what’s already on the table.

Silence isn’t something to overcome, it’s a breath in discussion, an excuse to observe each others smile.

Whatever this is doesn’t have a name. Not yet.

In the heat of the day, in the shimmering mirage of life, you’re the one paradise I know is real.

I muse, in secret and in hope, if I’m the sanctuary you’ve been looking for as well.

Curiosity and wonder reflect in your eyes. Bright, illuminating. Although people keep staring at our glow, you’re all I can see.

I’m not sure what will come of this, but for the first time in forever I am living for now not tomorrow.

What happens later can worry about itself.

Right now, laughter echoes across the water; yours, mine–they might as well be the same. Everything blends.

Your words come out like a song, sirening me closer even though I worry what allowing myself that extra inch might create.

But still, we press on.

Warmth is not only twirling in the breeze, but coloring your cheeks.

Together we explore alleyways and areas unknown, shifting from shop to shop, trading stories of years gone by.

Time disappears behind the horizon, drawing the day down with it and I’m not convinced there are enough hours in our eternity.

Every time you glance away, I steal a memory of you. A keepsake. A treasure.

Although the snacks we share are sticky on our fingers, crumbling in our laps, our connection is unbreakable.

I hold tight to my thoughts, locking in the desires I won’t tell you until later.

Here we find a union, a mutual nervous welling of potential that causes us to crown this spot a place we will call our own.

In you, I recognize something I’ve seen before, but never this way.

As the evening draws down, and the light fades, we begin to reveal what normally takes me months to admit.

Somehow it doesn’t ruin the night. Somehow it makes it better, like it’ll have been worth the investment this time.

Rain trickles over our shoulders, speckling our clothes as soft lightening illuminates the clouds.

The rumble rattles through us. The electricity erupts.

You reach for me and I try not to pull away. I always pull away. For you, I reach back.

Maybe this time, I think. Maybe you.