u—
i see ur lips when
my eyes flutter open in the
dead of summer nights—
like butterflies kissing my
skin. don’t u know that
u’ve infected me, the way
humidity infects mid-July?
one a.m.—i count stars,
but i miss the ones i saw in
ur eyes, bursting with
constellations at golden hour.
u—u don’t know that u saturate
my lungs & rob me of oxygen all at
once, make my pulse come in
dizzying rushes. u struck my body
like a comet, unknowingly cradled
my soul & split it into shards by not
giving me yours. u—
i hear ur laugh a stone’s throw away.
cannot determine whether or not i am
dreaming, but i catch a papery butterfly
wing between my thumb
& index finger.
—u
Sierra Elman is an aspiring author and poet. She has been recognized by the Scholastic Art and Writing Awards, Stone Soup, NaNoWriMo, and is a two-time winner of the Sarah Mook Poetry Contest. Besides writing, she also enjoys playing the piano and guitar.