To Love A Boy
I once said to you over the phone,
As I watched the sunset at Dominicus Beach,
That I wanted to love you
The same way I love the ocean—
Like that Maya Hawke song.
I said her words as if they were mine,
Wishing you'd say, What a brilliant poet I am.
But instead, you said,
“You don’t know how to swim.”
“You might drown”, you said.
And I thought it wouldn’t be such a bad way to die,
At least I’d be held by you—
At least once.
But I didn’t say anything back.
I just stared ahead, watching the sun
Set slowly into the ocean,
Hearing you breathe through the phone,
Feeling so small.
Feeling so alone.