passerby
we didn’t meet conventionally
on small town streets that lead back to each other conveniently
we weren’t next door neighbors who were always too close for comfort
we were just two people on a crowded street and somehow you bumped into me
i don’t think it was fate that brought us together
it was your two left feet and because you needed a reason to talk to me
you stuttered when you apologized
and for a moment i thought you might cry
i told you it was okay that i was fine
and that’s where our conversation should’ve ended
but you were very persistent
a bump turned into a nudge
and that nudge turned into a shove
a year down the line we were talking about love
convinced that the two of us had grown up
as if maturity is a destination we reach after years of seeking
unbeknownst to us, it’s not a place, it’s a thing
that constantly evolves as we make mistakes and find our place over and over again
i thought my place was a spot next to you
it never occurred to me that you might move
and when you did, you didn’t take me with you
you were just a passerby and you passed me by
