While You`re Still Here

a poem from my upcoming book Wings Without Sky

I don’t ask where you’ve been,
or why you return so hushed,
like you’re atoning for time spent apart.

I don’t count your messages,
or hunt for hidden signs.
But I hear when your silence shifts.

I feel when your laugh falters.
You clasp me close,
but your arms don’t linger.

You kiss me,
but your eyes don’t stay.
I pretend I don’t notice.

Because I love you.
Because I can’t bring myself to ask
if you’re still here because you want to be,
or because you’ve nowhere else to go.