No Way Back to Then

I did not dare,
not then—
when love stood trembling at my door,
barefoot and wide-eyed,
offering me the sky
in the cup of his hands.

I turned away.
Called it too much,
too wild,
too close.
I named my fear "freedom"
and walked into silence.

And now…
You do not know the sound of my voice.
It has faded from your memory
like music left out in the rain.

You no longer see
the color of my heart—
it grew dimmer
with each day that passed
since I let you go.
A shade grayer,
a shade sadder.

I carry the ache
of choices unspoken,
of chances unlived.
And though time has moved on,
my soul still lingers
in the hallway
where you once waited.

You are etched
in the softest corner of me—
forever folded into the breath
I hold when I remember.
But I…
I am alone in this remembering.

There is no path
that winds us back to then.
No whisper that can undo
the silence between us.

And now—
the now is all ache.
A quiet ache
that curls beside me at night,
a name I do not speak,
but feel
in every corner of my being.

You were love.
And I was too afraid.
And that
is the truth I live with.

Simona 🦋

If my poems and stories truly touch your heart,
would you consider fluttering a little magic my way
by buying me a coffee?
It helps me keep writing,
keep dreaming,
keep letting these butterfly wings of mine flutter through stardust and ink.