I may say that I know you.
But how could I?
When you have woven not walls I might climb
But long labyrinths coiled
Around yourself
There are a thousand and fifty one ways
But none of them reach your heart
Fresh fortresses at the end of every path I seek
The heaviness of the doors makes my heart sink.

When we speak not of the dreamy sunsets
But of the beauty of our shadows
Elongating in tune with the length of our conversations
On the steps of the river bank,
You smile with your endless eyes
I feel, a door has opened.
Yet the moment next,
The door disappears, leaving its shadow behind
I keep running after shadows.

I hold your hand sometimes
Will you ever squeeze it back?
You smile at me,
And I cannot think of anything else
For hours on end.
When I'm alone at nightfall
I replay your smile in my head
Clutching at a fleeting image
Lest it should turn to smoke.

Perhaps it's useless to hope.
I labelled the unnamed longing in my heart
The Gross Over-expectations of Romance.
(Alternately,
The Downside of Being
A Clichéd Hopeless Romantic?)

When I stopped mid-sentence
Telling you about my
Better-than-the-average day,
You brought your empty eyes back to life.
Maybe you try too hard to mask them
For my sake, as a friend.

The myriad ways I try to reach you
Are always destined only to my broken heart.
I may say that I know you
But how could I
When you haven't truly
Given me the right?