| poems {afi} |

| prologue

"But, why did you feel the need to write these poems for me?"

The boy fidgeted at this question, darting his bifocal clad eyes around the senselessly sleeping neighborhood. Outside, the somber sky cloaked the petite buildings like a baby swaddled in a black blanket. The air surrounding the two hung stale, filled with the potential answers of a shy boy who only desired to communicate with words on paper. His heart caught in his throat. He was trapped inside a whirlwind of emotions, feeling the blood rush to his head and the heat leaving his calloused fingers. The girl standing across from him anticipated an answer, cracking a small grin in hopes that it would assure him that there was nothing to be afraid of. He had thought that perhaps if he didn't write her those poems, if he had just put down the pen and ventured off to another hobby, then he wouldn't be in this situation in which he actually had to talk to her. She was never to find out who he was or why he had composed the hearfelt poems in the first place. But there he stood, his thoughts swimming in a pool of worry and regret. Worried that she'd think he was a hawker, and regretting stepping out of his aparment that day only to find her sobbing helplessly on the stoop of the aging brick building she called her home. But finally, after what seemed like an eternity of silence, he spoke, his words shaking vigorously as they slipped away from his mouth.

"Because I.... I thought they would m-make you feel better."

The girl snickered timidly, her eyes immediately casting to the rough sidewalk she stood on. She jolted her head back up to meet the boy's wavering gaze, before pressing her soft lips against his smooth ones. Startled, the boy let out a gasp as he felt the girl come in contact with his skin. His body tensed up in fright. Goosebumps grew on every inch of exposed skin, making him tremble. Having never kissed a girl before, he kept his eyes glued on her, assuming a stiff position and keeping his lanky arms by his sides. The girl pulled away from the kiss, chewing on the inside of her lip before she took the boy's hand in hers.

"Thank you for making me feel better."

And in that moment, all the words that hung in the air came crashing down, and the boy's body softened as he stared into the eyes of the broken heart that he had mended.