Still i stayed

I watched you come undone in quiet ways, Not all at once—but slowly, day by day, In fractured truths you placed into my hands, Then swore were real, though I could barely stand. You spoke in threads that never quite aligned, A woven mess of half-truths and disguise, And I—so desperate just to keep you near— Began to doubt the things I saw and feared. You bent the light until it favored you, Made shadows out of everything I knew, And still I held you, shaking in the dark, As if my love alone could make you whole again. There’s a certain kind of grief in staying still, While watching someone break by force of will, To love a storm that tears its home apart, Then ask you why you fear its restless heart. And even now, through all the hurt you gave, Through every truth you twisted, bent, or shaved, There’s something in me that refuses end— A love that aches… and does not know pretend.