His dark eyes glistened –
My lips tingled;
My heart thumped.
The room faded to him;
He was all I could see.

The men crept further into the building, watching not to fall over the large amount of debris and broken furniture laying about the place. Stuart suddenly slipped and fell to the floor.

Sometimes when it’s quiet, I think about;
I think about he who I once loved.
Sometimes when I’m alone, I think about;
I think about he who I once feared.

We grew in noxious soil and fed on dirt;
We yearned for just a moment in the sun.
Every apple that fell bruised and shrivelled;
Our selfishness ensured none felt the warmth.

JAMES STRETCHED FROM under the safety of his warm quilt to switch off the alarm. As he did, his tired eyes spotted the red circle on his calendar that had spent weeks slithering toward him like a preying snake.

While I slept curled up in my lonely bed,
I dreamed I lay in a green field.
The warm air caressed me;
the world sat still and quiet.
Peaceful. Free.

Your kindness took my hand and held my gaze –
For the first time, I felt a man’s embrace.
I yearned to smoulder with my inner blaze –
My heart pounded with the sense of disgrace.

I spotted the figure of male darkness;
Surrounded by an aura of despair.
My gaze soaked in his masculinity;
God’s soothing voice cautioned me to beware.

They were always so wild and empowered;
Nothing prevented them from being free.
My heart raced with deep queenly frustration –
My lips quivered while I watched them release.

Dear Holy Mother, how to trust my heart?
With all that I have witnessed and beheld.
To trust a male soul is too much to ask –
The flames burn from withinside my own hell.