My heart doesn't love right It yearns and aches edging itself with tears Waiting to be loved back In the Time Zone of "Unrequited Always" For Months ...sometimes Years Sometimes Longer. Like Forever. *** Never the dream And barely the fantasy Always outside everyone’s - Risk profile - Boundaries - Kink Limits - Comfort Zone - Politics - Orientation - Geographical Location - Patience - Lifestyle Choice - Aesthetic Preferen...

I wonder what you do when you miss me. I wonder how you hold back to act on those desires that I used to kindle. I wonder if we have lost the fire in each other's eyes, the warmth of our bodies when we shut the world, and just think about us-- how our lips crash, how our hips roll, and collide... How our worlds melt into one when you hug me close, when you say my smile eases out your worries, when you whisper how you want...

I see him even when I don’t. In the tilt of a stranger’s head, a laugh caught in passing or that dark mop of hair just ahead of me bobbing in the crowd, I walk everywhere with a transfixed stare and his face blooms in my mind without warning, sharp and perfect, my private hallucination. Sometimes I try to keep it out. I tell myself to focus on the conversation, the shopping list, stick to the reality of whatever task is a...

NOW The aphorism that “you never forget your first” was one that had always bothered Bertie. For one, which ‘first’ was it referring to? His first crush would have been on a classmate in grade school, but which classmate or even which year had been lost to his memory. His first kiss was a dare in junior high. The kid who dared him was named Ken Jakes, but the girl in question? He couldn’t remember her, either. Even the de...

I step into the classroom Hoping that you are there My chest pounds with my heartbeat As I spot you sitting in that chair I take a seat, but not too close Too afraid you might become aware My eyes shift to glance your way And I try hard not to stare There is a pit in my stomach As I admire your beautiful hair You turn and finally spot me Your smile has no compare My hands shake as I consider Whether or not I can dare To s...

Her name was Sophie, and she’d worked in the restaurant for as long as Bertie had been around. She’d worked as a table greeter and a waitress, and had even put in shifts cleaning dishes when the job had demanded it, working her way up the chain of command for the last ten years. Now, at twenty-seven, she was a fixture of the dining room, with her own regulars and even some smitten customers. Sometimes he wondered, in a di...

Ernesto brushed his teeth with extra vigour that day, then he scraped his tongue. He combed his hair, cut his nails and then put on his best clothes. This was his big day. He was sure of it. Today, after four years, the beautiful love story of Ernesto and Ruth would finally get its happy ending. There really should be a rousing soundtrack for a kiss that, were they TV characters, the fans would have waited years for. They...

Have you ever seen framed art in someone else's home be just the slightest bit crooked? And you want to fix it so desperately, but you don't even really feel like you should be there? Except you were invited, so obviously you must belong there. Yet you still feel like an intruder and that you're invading the home owner's privacy by even looking at the photo to begin with. Yet it hangs there, mocking you, begging to be fix...