Love Shouldn't Hurt

No one should have to survive love that breaks, That molds itself in cruel mistakes. Where care comes laced with sharp control, And kindness has a hidden toll. They say it’s love—but love’s not fear, Not walking quiet year by year. Not flinching at a tone or glance, Not begging just to get a chance. Love shouldn’t twist your sense of worth, Or train you to apologize for birth. It shouldn’t leave you feeling small, Or bracing just to take the fall. I learned to read the silent cues, To shrink myself and never lose. To keep the peace, to play it right, To sleep in armor every night. But love, real love, it doesn’t cage. It doesn’t set your soul to rage. It doesn’t make you second-guess If safety means you must suppress. I’ve spent my years in tangled lines, In “I’m okay”s and well-timed signs. But now I want to learn, to see, What love could be—not what it’s been for me. Because no one should be torn apart By hands that claim to hold their heart. And I am more than pain endured— I am still here. I will be cured. Not all at once. Not all today. But I’ll survive in my own way. And one day love will feel like peace— Not something I must fight to keep.