Tell me no

I keep trying to push my words into you / even now
I am writing you this poem
as if it might fill you up with something
I can really sink my teeth into

I am writing you this poem,
even if you never asked for it
Even though I know you
won't understand it
It feels so good anyway / and besides
I don't know what else to do

I hope one day you understand what it means
to be lost inside yourself / though I know you will not
You are not one to turn your head away
from something you want
And why should you? Although it can be
equally delicious / Here, I'll show you

We stare at each other from across the street,
waiting for the light to change,

your breath unfurling in slow motion.

I spend considerable time speculating / Are you thinking
what I'm thinking? Tell me no / despite your spreading pupils
and the skip of your pulse / please tell me
no / but i know you
and it won't stop

I will wait until it is late and you are most tired
I will whisper something heady into your neck / I will
linger on you / until something interesting happens

I too am worried / that this is a bad plan
But everything is a bad plan when you are impatient
You cannot block someone's path
towards what they want most / Well
you can try / but it doesn't do any good
You should know

I didn’t know what else to do
I looked over my shoulder
to make sure you were watching / I wrote you this letter
I stood between two mirrors / reflected infinitely
I fogged up the glass
and traced your name in cursive
I let you look / and for once
I felt angelic
Not virtuous / but holy
like a shrine
immaculate
and lithe /
lovely, even