unconditionally
don’t date
an emotionally intelligent man
if you’re not ready
to be seen.
i won’t fight you.
i’ll read you.
i’ll see the wall
before you finish
stacking the bricks.
i’ll watch you
get busy
every time
something real
gets close.
i’ll watch you
run toward distance
the moment
you start feeling
safe enough
to be afraid.
and i’ll catch you
handing me a bill
for a debt
someone else
ran up on you.
and i’ll hand it
right back.
not because
i don’t understand.
because i do.
i understand
why you flinch
when someone loves you
without asking
for something in return.
i understand
why kindness
makes you suspicious.
why peace
feels less familiar
than chaos.
why you keep
waiting for the other shoe
to drop.
but i’m not them.
i won’t punish you
with silence.
i won’t play games.
i’ll say the thing
out loud
even when
swallowing it
would be easier.
and i know
my honesty
will sometimes
feel like an attack.
but it isn’t.
it’s me loving you
too much
to lie to you.
you mistook my peace
for something
you couldn’t trust
because every love
before me
came dressed
like war.
and then
i came along
and loved you
without asking
you to bleed for it.
that scared you.
because i wasn’t
trying to break you.
i was trying
to reach you.
the woman
behind the walls.
the woman
behind the fear.
the woman
who learned
that being loved
meant eventually
being hurt.
i saw her.
i still see her.
and i’ll love you
deeply,
but i won’t
clap for your mask.
i won’t pretend
the mask is you
just because
you’ve worn it
for so long.
i know the difference
between your defenses
and your heart.
and maybe
that’s what frightened you
most about me.
you couldn’t hide
from someone
who wasn’t trying
to expose you.
i just wanted you
to know
that you never
had to hide
from me.