Price of Attachment

I held on too tightly to things that were never mine to hold, Mistaking presence for permanence, and warmth for something bold. I named fleeting moments as anchors in a life unsure, And paid for it in loneliness no comfort could ever cure. Attachment is a tender lie we feed our aching chest, A soft illusion where longing wears its Sunday best. I learned too late that love is not proof of return, And proximity doesn't guarantee a heart that yearns. I clung to words half-meant and eyes that didn't stay, Forgetting that love with conditions is love that's built to fray. The more I gave, the more I disappeared within, A shadow of self tangled in what could've been. I rewrote their silences into meanings I needed to hear, Built castles on glances that only saw me in passing, unclear. They never asked me to stay, but I stayed nonetheless, Hoping consistency would replace the ache of emptiness. You see, love taught me how to hold, not how to let go, How to pour everything into someone who doesn’t even know. And now my ribs are tired from being a borrowed home, Where affection comes knocking, but never stays long alone.