The Laws of Longing

There are times when the stars in her
collide and every thought of him
disintegrates into dust,

times when he holds her
at a distance she can't translate,

when he loves her
only in silhouette,

the days when he makes her feel
like the blue skies of his youth,
making theirs not love
but a reminiscing,

or when he looks at her and his eyes flicker
like a three a.m. silence needing caffeine

and how, though she tries to storm his inhibitions,
he keeps the drawbridge to his chest.

But, mostly, it happens when she sleeps,
curled away from him like a question,

when he catches the certainty of her shape

and thinks it's been too long
since he was last in love

but still lights another cigarette anyway
and attempts to smoke the longing out.