all those nights with the phone warming the side of my face like the sun. you made jokes and sure, i may have even laughed a little but mostly you were not funny. mostly you were beautiful. mostly you were unremarkable, even your mediocrity was unremarkable. when friends would ask ‘what do you like about him?” i would think of you holding a bouquet against the denim of your shirt. i mean, you had my face as your screensaver for gods sake, do you know what that does for the self-esteem of girl with an apparition for a father? hey, do you remember the quiet between us in all those restaurants? all the other couples engrossed in deep conversation and us, as quiet as a closed mouth. that one afternoon when i asked ‘why do you love me?’ and you replied as quick as a toin coss ‘because you’re mad, because you’re crazy’ and i said ‘why else?’ and you said ‘that mouth, i love that mouth’ and i collapsed into myself like a sheet right out of the dryer. you clean, beautiful, unremarkable boy, raised by a pleasant mother, was i just a riot you loved to watch up close? there were times i picked arguments just so that we could have something to talk about. last week, i walked through the part of the city i loved when i still loved you, our old haunts. you know, even the ghosts have moved on.
Warsan Shire
Related There are moments in every relationship that define when two people start to fall in love. A fi... COLLEEN HOOVER And I loved you I loved you so There were times I forgot to breathe Waiting ... VERONIKA JENSEN I want you to tell me about every person you’ve ever been in love with. Tell me why you loved... ANDREA GIBSON Dear Sixpence, I saved them all, you know. Every letter you ever sent, even those to whic... SARAH MACLEAN How...how do you feel about me?” “I think it’s pretty obvious.” “Let’s just sa... JENNIFER L. ARMENTROUT M: How do you feel about me? R: I think it's pretty obvious. M: Let's just say I need deta... JENNIFER L. ARMENTROUT Oh, God, Francesca,Now there’s a good one.Why?Why? Why?” He gave each one a different tenor, as ... JULIA QUINN Don't you do that. Don't you look at what I had for you and call it weak. Not when you wer... CAITLYN SIEHL I think of you often and make no outward show, But what it means to lose you, no one will ... ANON. I fucking love you!” He grabbed each side of my face, slamming his lips against mine. “I l... JAMIE MCGUIRE i want to apologize to all the women i have called beautiful before i’ve called them intellig... RUPI KAUR I ask the impossible: love me forever. Love me when all desire is gone. Love me with the s... ANA CASTILLO Dear Camryn, I never wanted it to be this way. I wanted to tell you these things myself, ... J.A. REDMERSKI This is the list you carry in your pocket, of the things you plan to say to Kay, when you find him, ... KELLY LINK Sonnet XVII I do not love you as if you were salt-rose, or topaz, or the arrow of ca... PABLO NERUDA My heart belongs to you,' He promised. 'Would you have loved me when I was a girl?' 'I hav... ISOBELLE CARMODY If I were to be made a knight," said the Wart, staring dreamily into the fire, "I should insist on d... T.H. WHITE Long-time viewing of Internet violence tend to change a person's temperament, making the person pron... YOU QUANXI If positive and healthy materials are absent, negative materials are sure to be dominant in the cybe... YOU QUANXI In a robust global business environment, our business units operated well in the first quarter. More... HARRY YOU The Board of Directors and I are pleased to recognize Peter's outstanding contribution to the succes... HARRY YOU We are pleased to close the books on 2004 following the painstaking review of almost five years of f... HARRY YOU How grateful are you?" he whispered, his mouth hovering over mine. His eyes were very alert now, and... CHARLAINE HARRIS I drove by all the places we used to hang out getting wasted I thought about our last kiss, how... 5 SECONDS OF SUMMER I made up my mind I was going to find someone who would love me unconditionally three hundred and si... HARUKI MURAKAMI You know why I really hated you? With all that you had you were just so oblivious to it all. You did... J.A. IRONSIDE You are a terrible liar. You do want this. Just as badly as I do.” My mouth opened, but no wo... JENNIFER L. ARMENTROUT Peeta, you said at the interview you’d had a crush on me forever. When did forever start? SUZANNE COLLINS I could go on all night, Lake. I could go on and on and on about all the reasons I’m in love with ... COLLEEN HOOVER O woman, father says natural is beautiful so why do you redden your cheeks and blac... KAMAND KOJOURI H--‐how did we get in the water?” “You were burning. I needed to do something to co... ELISABETH NAUGHTON You're so beautiful But that's not why I love you And I'm not sure you know That t... AVRIL LAVIGNE Just that I have loved you, even when I was nothing and no one to you, when you didn’t know my nam... SHERRY THOMAS My mother tells me that when I meet someone I like, I have to ask them three questions: CAITLYN SIEHL You! You tricked me! I never want to see you or that bottle of liquid arsenic again!” I... JEANIENE FROST Do you think I have good character?” “The best.” Smiling, she ran her fingers down... BIJOU HUNTER To my son, If you are reading this letter, then I am dead. I expect to die, if no... CASSANDRA CLARE I am Shiloh, whose box you stole. Your godmother's sickness lies in your own keeping, you can heal h... A.E. COPPARD Blue jeans, white shirt Walked into the room you know you made my eyes burn It was like, J... LANA DEL REY Yeah, I get it; you're a vampire," she said. "Creepy. And okay, a little hot, I admit." "You d... RACHEL CAINE You are real," she said to herself. "Aye." His voice was deep and resonant, a caress in h... J.R. WARD All I do when we're apart is think about you, and all I when we're together is panic. Because every ... RAINBOW ROWELL Breaking the circle” My eyes darken when I see my new lover. Fresh prey. My body d... ASPER BLURRY I am not the first person you loved. You are not the first person I looked at with a mouth... CLEMENTINE VON RADICS I don’t love you as if you were a rose of salt, topaz, or arrow of carnations that propagate... PABLO NERUDA What are my options?" "You could read obscure poetry while I play the triangle, I suppose. Or w... MICHELLE HODKIN I see how it is,” I snapped. “You were all in favor of me breaking the tattoo and thinking on my... RICHELLE MEAD L: You want me just to be your... friend? E: You want the truth? I think you're my guardi... SOPHIE KINSELLA XVI I love the handful of the earth you are. Because of its meadows, vast as a planet, PABLO NERUDA You know what, Sam? We created the council to take pressure off of you. Because you were falling apa... MICHAEL GRANT Dear Goat, How does one fall in love? Do you trip? Do you stumble, lose your balance and ... CATHLEEN SCHINE Jane, my little darling (so I will call you, for so you are), you don't know what you are talking ab... CHARLOTTE BRONTë I only wanted to . . . I mean, just now, when Mr. George interrupted us, there was something very im... KERSTIN GIER He stared at me. "She liked you, boy." The intensity of his voice and eyes made me blink. "Yes,... JERRY SPINELLI To the most inconsiderate asshole of a friend, I’m writing you this letter because I know tha... CECELIA AHERN Woah,' I said, blocking the doorway. 'You can't come in here. This is the girls' room.' Even a... ADAM REX I had a dream about you. We were in the gold room where everyone finally gets what they want. RICHARD SIKEN Christ says: I know you through and through – I know everything about you. The very hairs of your ... MOTHER TERESA Do you love me, Westley? Is that it?’ He couldn’t believe it. ‘Do I love you? My God, if... WILLIAM GOLDMAN I missed you,” he said quietly, his gaze darting between her mouth and eyes. “When I was in SARAH J. MAAS eat, baby. eat. chew. please. I know it hurts. I know it doesn’t feel good. CAITLYN SIEHL Why are you being so nice to me?' I asked her. 'You know,' she said, 'when you say stuff like t... SARAH DESSEN He tried to measure his day by tallying the hours on his wrist. I wiped it off and called... KAMAND KOJOURI Did you know I always thought you were braver than me? Did you ever guess that that was why I was so... JODI LYNN ANDERSON Mom." I couldn't believe she was doing this again. She was taking this moment, this time when I was ... SARAH DESSEN Do you care about your image?' Even as the words were coming out of my mouth, I was mentally kicking... JENNIFER STURMAN I clinked my bottle against his. “To being the only girl a guy with no standards doesn’t w... JAMIE MCGUIRE I Like For You To Be Still I like for you to be still It is as though you are... PABLO NERUDA I tried!” She screamed, her eyes filled with raw emotion. All Sarah could do is stand there, speec... ZOE SANTANA Still perfect,” he said. “Read to me.” “This isn’t really a poem to read aloud when y... JOHN GREEN We don't even love each other. I do a bit, you know. You do what a bit? You know. Lik... MELINA MARCHETTA A Woman's Question Do you know you have asked for the costliest thing Ever made by t... JOSHUA HARRIS Captain Harvile: Poor Phoebe, she would not have forgotten him so soon. It was not in her nature. JANE AUSTEN She dared to cry? On this day of all days? I was the one who would be married at sunset, and I hadn'... ROSAMUND HODGE You are so much more than I bargained for,” I confessed, which gained her attention. “I knew I w... C.A. HARMS all the girls you’ve ever loved, i think i loved them too. interlude for the grand sonata WARSAN SHIRE Nothing they say or do can ever change the man you are,” Trinity continued. “A man I love with a... C.A. HARMS That’s when I realized that I really loved you.” She sat down on the floor with me. She sp... STEPHEN CHBOSKY My dear Rosie, Unbeknownst to you I took this chance before, many, many years ago. You ne... CECELIA AHERN You ought to know, you were my best friend. You were. I know you loved me. I loved you. No one ... ALEXANDER CHEE Clary, Despite everything, I can't bear the thought of this ring being lost forever, any... CASSANDRA CLARE Good morning," said the little prince. Good morning," said the merchant. This ... ANTOINE DE SAINT-EXUPéRY Amor" So many days, oh so many days seeing you so tangible and so close, how do... PABLO NERUDA I know the consequences of what I’ve done. Kill me if You must. There was a long sil... KIERA CASS I say to my sister, "I thought you were doing the things in our Dream Book. I was sure of it." CLARA KENSIE Isn't it weird," I said, "the way you remember things, when someone's gone?" What do you mean?"... SARAH DESSEN Tess, Tess, Tessa. Was there ever a more beautiful sound than your name? To speak it ... CASSANDRA CLARE He put a hand to my face and guided my eyes to his. "We never lost that. As much as I tried, I could... PENELOPE DOUGLAS I had no sister, but I felt as if she were one." "A sister? You think of a woman that gorgeous ... JACK CAMPBELL How do we get there? How did you get here, by the way?' [Will asked]. He heard Halt's dee... JOHN FLANAGAN Oh. My. God. You're Rose Hathaway aren't you?" "Yeah." I said with surprise. "Do you know... RICHELLE MEAD Something about you caught me by surprise Though I always knew you’d be my demise. R.S. GREY I love you in my very own way. Like a stone loves the mosses around it Like a sea loves th... ARZUM UZUN Maxon, some of those marks are on your back so they wouldn’t be on mine, and I love you for them.�... KIERA CASS When I was a child, an angel came to say, A true friend is coming my warrior to sweep you away,... SHANNON L. ALDER Why must you hurt me, when I love you so? When I can do nothing else nor want to, for love made me a... STEPHEN KING Damn, damn, damn," she said. "I never said why I like you, and now I have to go." "That's okay,... RAINBOW ROWELL You weren’t meant for the ice, you weren’t made for the pain. The world that lives inside ... ABBI GLINES -I would die for you -You lie -If I lie, why do I stand here before and beg on my knees t... M A shower. Still equipped with warm, running water.” I say longingly. I refuse to let up about... TRACEY WARD
More Warsan Shire
two people who were once very close can without blame or grand betrayal become strang... WARSAN SHIRE later that night i held an atlas in my lap ran my fingers across the whole world a... WARSAN SHIRE It's not my responsibility to be beautiful. I'm not alive for that purpose. My existence is not abou... WARSAN SHIRE Document the moments you feel most in love with yourself - what you’re wearing, who you’re aroun... WARSAN SHIRE His eyes were the same colour as the sea in a postcard someone sends you when they love you, but not... WARSAN SHIRE At the end of the day, it isn’t where I came from. Maybe home is somewhere I’m going and never h... WARSAN SHIRE My alone feels so good, I'll only have you if you're sweeter than my solitude. WARSAN SHIRE all those nights with the phone warming the side of my face like the sun. WARSAN SHIRE give your daughters difficult names. give your daughters names that command the full use of tongue. ... WARSAN SHIRE you can't make homes out of human beings someone should have already told you that WARSAN SHIRE the year of letting go, of understanding loss. grace. of the word ‘no’ and also being able to sa... WARSAN SHIRE you are a horse running alone and he tries to tame you compares you to an impossible highw... WARSAN SHIRE every mouth you’ve ever kissed was just practice all the bodies you’ve ever undressed<... WARSAN SHIRE make love like you have no secrets like you’ve never been left nev... WARSAN SHIRE The ego hurts you like this: you become obsessed with the one person who does not love you. blind to... WARSAN SHIRE Your daughter is ugly. She knows loss intimately, carries whole cities in her belly. ... WARSAN SHIRE I want to lay down, but these countries are like uncles who touch you when you're young and asleep. ... WARSAN SHIRE We emotionally manipulated each other until we thought it was love. WARSAN SHIRE We took such care of tomorrow, but died on the way there. WARSAN SHIRE But sometimes your light attracts moths and your warmth attracts parasites. Protect your space and e... WARSAN SHIRE Perhaps, the problem is not the intensity of your love, but the quality of the people you are loving... WARSAN SHIRE If it’ll keep my heart soft, break my heart every day. WARSAN SHIRE your mouth is a lonely place but i keep coming back. WARSAN SHIRE I’m not sad, but the boys who are looking for sad girls always find me. I’m not a girl anymore a... WARSAN SHIRE how far have you walked for men who’ve never held your feet in their laps? how often have you... WARSAN SHIRE Sad people have the gift of time, while the world dizzies everyone else; they remain stagnant, their... WARSAN SHIRE Mother says there are locked rooms inside all women, kitchen of love, bedroom of grief, bathroom of ... WARSAN SHIRE You want me to be a tragic backdrop so that you can appear to be illuminated, so that people can say... WARSAN SHIRE The only darkness we should allow into our lives is the night, for even then, we have the moon. WARSAN SHIRE Loving you was like going to war; I never came back the same. WARSAN SHIRE With you, intimacy colours my voice. even ‘hello’ sounds like ‘come here'. WARSAN SHIRE I have my mother’s mouth and my father’s eyes; on my face they are still together. WARSAN SHIRE And were you being good to yourself? i don’t think so. but, i forgive you, girl, who tallied ... WARSAN SHIRE I am a lover without a lover. I am lovely and lonely and I belong deeply to myself. WARSAN SHIRE all the girls you’ve ever loved, i think i loved them too. interlude for the grand sonata WARSAN SHIRE The sun is perfect and you woke this morning. You have enough language in your mouth to be understoo... WARSAN SHIRE I know a few things to be true. I do not know where I am going, where I have come from is disappeari... WARSAN SHIRE I want to make love, but my hair smells of war and running and running. WARSAN SHIRE By the time I’ve finished with you, you won’t know whether you’ve been kissed or cut,... WARSAN SHIRE You think I’ll be the dark sky so you can be the star? I’ll swallow you whole. WARSAN SHIRE fit in here, in my palm, in my shadow, don’t be bigger than my idea of you, don’t be more beauti... WARSAN SHIRE for the fifth time this month you say you’re going to leave him he calls you a cunt over... WARSAN SHIRE You are terrifying and strange and beautiful, someone not everyone knows how to love. WARSAN SHIRE I could have lived off all the male careers in my family. Everybody was always getting ovations, but... TALIA SHIRE Our past is who we are, and death is one of our experiences. I lost my husband a long time ago, but ... TALIA SHIRE I have a feeling when I'm 80 years old I'm going to get a phone call: There's going to b... TALIA SHIRE I am a lover without a lover. I am lovely and lonely and I belong deeply to myself. WARSON SHIRE