Between Bruises & Blooms

You disappeared
slowly enough
that I kept calling it distance
instead of goodbye.

A little less warmth.

A little less effort.

A little more silence
where your voice
used to live.

And I kept making excuses
for the empty spaces.

Maybe you’re tired.

Maybe you’re scared.

Maybe tomorrow
you’ll remember
that you love me.

Tomorrow came.

And then another.

And another.

Until eventually
I stopped reaching
for a phone
that never rang.

Stopped checking doors
you weren’t walking through.

Stopped building futures
with a man
who couldn’t even stay
in the present.

You probably thought
you were teaching me patience.

You weren’t.

You were teaching me
how to survive
without you.

And eventually,

I got very fucking good at it.

Now if you return,

you won’t find
the woman you left waiting.

She got tired.

She got angry.

She cried herself empty.

Then she stood up.

And somewhere
between your silence
and her healing,

she learned
how to lose you.