there is a boy in my english class who looks like he was stolen from a young adult novel
his glasses hide his face better than a mask
sweater paws and a zipped hoodie even on the warmest day of the year
he never talks, barely listens
I look at him and wonder if people can be so transparent yet so opaque
he sits so close with light passing through him as he barely creates a shadow
but I can never see through him
do I even know his face
do I even know his name
is he even real
or is he a projection of you
that I brought into existence to keep me away from reality?
but he sits there, next to me on the empty chair
barely breathing, badly breaking
one day he will disappear
I'll unlock the chains that bind him here
he will fly. far away, far from me
when I realise my agony is your ecstasy.
