You Know You Love Me

I fell in love for the first time seven years ago,

I didn’t know I was in love, 

I didn’t even know the definition, 

But his name fit like a glove

Around the heart I put in his hands.

In his mind, my heart was a ball

That he threw around the room,

Bouncing wall to wall.

Maybe this was how boys played the game of love,

Like it was just that,

A game.

A game that if lost,

Was a game he convinced the ref he won.

I didn’t mind losing.

I mean the rules were confusing,

But his victory was mine,

And my victory wasn’t his.

Eventually I learned the rules, 

Found out he wasn’t even playing.

The game wasn’t a competition,

Just him repeatedly saying,

”You know you love me,”

And when his eyes reached mine,

I knew,

For the second time,

I lost at my own game.

The pain didn’t go away,

Neither did the love, 

But in a way,

He helped me grow up.

He helped me realize life is too short

To play someone else’s game.