You walk beside me.

No footsteps.

No sound.

But I see your shape

in every choice I make.

Even when I run...

especially when I run,

you match my pace

like you’ve always known

where I’ll land.

I closed my eyes once,

and imagined the crows.

How they wait.

How they hunger.

But when I opened them,

you were still there.

Quiet.

Patient.

The most familiar view I’ve ever known.

They say fog eventually lifts.

That clarity returns.

But even when I can’t see you,

I know.

You don’t leave.

You don’t have to.

You live here now.

As long as this curse lingers,

let me feel your hand.

Even if it burns.

Even if it breaks me.

Let me know I’m still something

you reach for.

Even if no one else does.

-Ikkel Yoo-