This is me, this is you, this is us.

That first stutter; the faltering step, eyes clouded with emotion,
The timidity of a mouse,
The innocent honesty of a newborn,
A desire stronger than iron,
All burn like the flame on a candle as I stare into your eyes,
Expectation, mixed with fear,
Gelled by familiarity and protection,
Awaiting, with bated breath.

Familiarity cracks,
Broken beneath a burden too much to bear,
Two simple words that shatter a lifetime,
A bond that seems torn asunder in an instance of madness,
Your eyes cloud, a storm approaching with a ferocity so swift,
The dam breaks and the lock is thrown open,
Sitting before the person you used to know,
Pleading why,
Why did this happen?
Why can't you show any emotion?
It is me comes the answer, resounding in that hollow chamber,
What was once light and happiness turning to stone,
And I cannot cry.

I cry,
Away from the open and infected wound, I cry,
A lifetime of doubt cascading in a river from my body,
A rising cacophony of thoughts pouring from my mind,
I hide and cry, even from she who would comfort me, I hide,
Pretending it's not there, that the beast cannot catch me,
That it's twisted dancing and mocking laughter is but a dream from which I will wake,
I try so hard, and for so long,
But I don't.

The passage of time comes as the beating of a hummingbirds wings,
A relentless onslaught,
And with it comes realisation; that this, here, now, is not the end of everything,
That though the storm destroys much, soon it will pass,
That the beast cannot survive forever,
That familiarity never left, and never will,
That together we are stronger than the sum of our parts, and with you here,
By my side to catch me if ever I stumble, or stray too far over the precipice of life,
Then the little boy you used to know will always remain the same,

Seasons may change,
Tides will ebb and flow,
People, who both hate and love, will come and go,
But as long as we remember, and never forget who each we are,
We will remain forever.