Mirror Image

afraid   

why would he want to talk to me now?

    why did we ever stop?

the pain lapped over like ocean waves -

when does a friend become a stranger?

when they seem distant, or don’t answer, or

don’t look at you at all?

don’t think

I believed it was forever

friendships are fragile creatures

    needing nurturing

but I thought we had cared for it well

so it would grow. we were

so different, practically reflections

so when I looked in the mirror and no longer saw him,

I felt my soul crack

I wanted to ask why

unsure whether to blame

him or me or the glass starkly glaring at me

but the answer could take what was left

and split me into little pieces

    sharp shards of glittering fragments

scattered on the floor for someone to step on with a crunch.

fear was restless inside

warring against itself -

to hide or to seek?

because I knew inaction meant I had already lost

    my friend and my respect,

but the second story is never as good as the first

and what if disappointment conquered all?

finally,

    finally,

        finally,

I dug deep inside with tooth and nail

I could not fail

I don’t remember the day,

but I chose to stand tall -

why not try?

whether closure or continuance,

    the story would end,

    the reflection would show truth

    the happy memories uncolored and clear

        as glass

worth it, I decided, and

requested to mend a friendship

not for the past, but for what could be

and now I look across from me

and see him smile.