I look up at the lumpy cauliflower in the sky and sigh. 

Crickets chirp in the distance as I wiggle my toes into the grainy damp sand. My raw skin burns against the little shards of rock. They pinch my heels. 

The waves crash rhythmically onto shore and I feel the foam tickle my nostrils. 

The breeze picks up and you curl into me. 

I wrap my arm around you and shiver. 

I stare into the fire as smoky tears fill my eyes. 

Feeling heavy, I melt into a puddle. 

I drowsily fall against you and melt away. 

The moment I walked in, I wanted to know you. 

Your eyes pulled me in, and before I could process it, I was talking to you. 

I don’t remember who noticed first, but our meeting was inevitable. 

We were an unlikely pair. 

You were electric and mischievous. 

And I was quiet and frumpy.

Your endless shiny tresses were like your endless words. 

I could hear you talk for years and never get bored. 

Your skill was endless. 

You hated poetry, yet yours was the most beautiful I’d ever heard. 

It was the first time that I was scared to lose a friend. 

You made me who I am and that’s a gift I can never repay you. 

You left pieces of yourself everywhere and I picked them up. 

Before you, laughter was my shield. 

But what many didn’t see was that I was breaking apart behind it. 

I was scared that you’d notice. That I wasn’t worth your energy. 

After all, my confidence was sub zero. 

You did notice, but you saw me the same. 

And for that I love you.