Now She Sleeps Beside Me

Now she sleeps beside me

In a lush four poster castle

We were taking turns exhaling

Two exhausted bodies flailing

Just a minute before this moment

Now I cannot bear the thought of going home

Now she sleeps beside me

I'm a visitor as of lately

We were in a poem, darkly lit

In a secret that we couldn't quit

A minute before this moment

Now I wonder if she'll ever let me stay

Now she sleeps beside me

A dark night of stolen glances

We were blending with our alibis

And hoping we won't need them

I just wonder if I'll get beyond

A mere minute before this moment's also gone

Now she sleeps beside me

And I try my best to let her be

A world rests on her shoulders

Her people need her kindness

Just a minute before this moment

She was pouring me an endless cup of tea

Now she sleeps beside me

Or perhaps she's just pretending

Two performative wild creatures

We were hanging in the balance

Just a minute before this moment

Now it's obvious a spell is cast on me

Now she sleeps beside me

A pale flamethrower in hiding

I'm a new man every time we meet

I skip home, sunrise at my feet

Our virtue is to be discreet

Though we know each moment inches toward defeat

Now she sleeps beside me

She just made me forget everything

I fled when she invited me

Her lips longed to confide in me

She's morbid and hilarious

Her heart must beat vicariously through me

Now she sleeps beside me

We have drifted off a dozen times

To the edge of fantasising

When she wakes up we are fated to

Become dream lovers of the past

Or embrace the fire and rise up from the ash

Now she sleeps beside me

Though she's sleeping next to someone else

She suffers in a silent way

And I have barely slept for days

But maybe we're just meant to be

The unfinished poem whispered in our sleep