We can never be a poem

We can never be a poem, Because we don’t rhyme. What you want, I resist, What I need, you dismiss We can never be a poem, Because we both carry a pause. A silence between us That only deepens the ache we share. We can never be a poem, Even our stanzas don’t align. I speak in fours, you in eights, You always take more, never giving way. We can never be a poem, Even our syllables drift apart. I count mine with care, Yours always spill over. We can never be a poem, Not now, not ever. Because our love is more like an essay— One that fades, losing meaning over. time.