our bodies are built to perceive being loved
and being wanted
as the same.
they are not.
you can be loved without the fire of a hungry gaze poised at the small of your back,
the pull of hands on your hips,
the kiss of fever into your clavicle.
you can be wanted without the sickly sweet expectation of giving back in equal measure for nights on end
in an inescapable temporal loop
of saint valentine's gift,
or curse,
depending on how wrapped up you are.
you can be appreciated with the ferocity of a thousand suns,
blinding until you lose sight of your visage in the mirror
because you let someone else define you as something you will never be.
you can be adored without the heavy collar of commitment
reigning suffocation down unto your heart and hands until you want out,
simply unable to take the weight anymore.
these are for you, and you deserve to choose.
