and it tells me that I can sleep

you are dependable, patient, gentle, and sweet.

you calm me down - hold my hands still when I can’t stop picking at my nails and rub my back in slow circles when my voice gets shaky.

it’s been a while now

- not enough, but a while -

and you still notice when I curl my hair or put on eyeshadow, and you call me pretty in a small, quiet voice, like you still have a crush.

You are quick to forgive, quick to forget, quick to love.

You soften my sharpness,

sew me up when I am spilling out,

sit by my side when I am sad.

You kiss me just to kiss me, and you hold my hand just to hold my hand - nothing more, nothing less, a simple touch.

You are never critical, always selfless, and reaching for humility.

You have seen the ugly bits and pieces by now, and still you stay.

Goofy when you want to be and dependable always.

When I catch you looking at me and smiling softly, with your eyes crinkled in that sweet way that they do,

I feel an entirety of love abounding from my heart,

and it tells me that I am fully known and

fully loved,

and it tells me that I can sleep,

close my eyes and breathe out

in the comfort

and in the steadiness

that there is someone who is there

and who loves me

and who is mine

and I am his.