Some days,

the pain threatened to creep in

and consume him,

but he refused to let it

He looked at her as if

he both loved her and couldn't ever love her

Yukio knew better than to give her his heart

that threatened so very often

to spill over,

out of him

He treated her like he always had

as if there was no room for the delicate nature

of love to slip in

Yukio backed away

from the feeling of being in love

out of fear,

hid everything,

bundled up inside

inside every safety blanket

of the heart

and hid even that

from her.