now (kiss)

now (kiss)

"He had kissed her good night that night,

and she had tasted like strawberry daiquiris,

and he had never wanted to kiss anyone else again."—

American Gods, Neil Gaiman

now i am dreaming of tattoos

and standing face to face with you

again

facing you and us

and wading into that storm

that rose up against me

that washed me away like straw

i lie in bed and i lie still

about dreaming or even being alive

having felt nothing for weeks

that i can no longer even count or imagine

if you would tell me to jump

or lie there across the tracks eyes closed

at least that would be something

against the blanket of lies about tattoos and dreams

but underneath those stones and the avalanche

that buried my heart and trapped me in darkness

i imagine your voice turning me to see you

and you moving toward me against me and then your lips