In the field, I see you, hidden among tall grass. Sunlight filters through the gaps. On all fours, I prowl, teeth bared in a grin, anticipating the startled yelp. You are clearer now, lost to the world, face lifted to the blue skies, back cradled by the soil, the wind brushing your skin. A relaxed smile plays on your lips, eyes closed in serenity. I growl low in anticipation. Then I leap! the yelp, the giggle, the playful smack. I collapse beside you, a sweet ache in my arm,

In another life, A parallel past, In our old age, Wrinkled and annoyed, I must have told you: “Maybe in the next life We should see other people.” You must have agreed. Half-heartedly, distracted, Attention already drifting. Maybe that’s why, in this life, We could never make it work. Our time burned hot, Brilliant with the promise of more, Then faded far too quickly With no reason I could hold onto. That’s why, in this life, I met other people. I loved oth

“Hold still,” you whisper. I writhe, I squirm, Your palms burn into me, Melting away the hardened ridges. I fear that there will be nothing left, Flesh and bones wrung into pliable clay. “No more!” I beseech. Deceiver. Beguiler. This time, I might not be able to find myself, Too distorted to take form again. “It must be. It will be,” you promise. Helpless, I bear witness to the cycle, Repeated, relentless, predestined. I surrender to the inferno, Fire breaks me. Air tempers m