i came home to find her asleep in my bed

she had on my shirt, too long and big for her

but she wore it so well

she was laying still and i watched her as she slept

memories of a hundred nights of lying next to her

i let her sleep

didn’t climb in next to her and wrap my arms around her

hold her closely

protect her from the evils of the world

every slight crack in my heart flared with pain in that moment

all i could do is cover her up and leave the room

she woke up and came out of the bedroom rubbing her eyes

a smile on her face hiding the apprehension in her eyes

i couldn’t speak

afraid of the words that would come out of my mouth

she wasn’t interested in talking

which matched my mood exactly

she slipped the shirt up and over her head

revealing it was the only thing between my mouth and her

we remedied that situation as quickly as possible

i knew what we embarked on was a mistake

but the taste of her

the soft supple feel of her skin

my teeth upon her erect nipples

it sang in my blood like the pulse of the earth beneath my feet

and as the tectonic plates of our flesh ground across each other

i understood the loss of pangea

that these continents were not meant to be together for an extended period

that we were meant to drift apart no matter how strong the connection

that when you look at a globe you can see how they fit together still

even while acknowledging how impossible it is to ever slide them back together again

she is the west coast of africa

and i

i am the east coast of south america

and we were meant to fit snugly into one another

but we are destined to be an ocean apart

longingly remembering the feel of one another

but

we cannot be draped across one another

satiated by the needs of flesh and longing

and i let her sleep

because i knew when she woke up the pull of us pulling apart would reaffirm itself

and i’d just fall away again