Every touch, every glance, every glimmer;
Any sign of a love that is not real
Clutched tightly in the recesses of memory,
Ready to be brought out in a desolate moment.

Her love is my invention;
Mine was inevitable.
She will never know;
I will never forget.

I watch her leave,
Watch her walk out of my life forever.
Why does she glance back?
Why is she meeting my eyes?

It was a dream.
A fevered, glorious dream,
But it was all a fantasy.

The ghost of a whisper, the hint of a smile;
It meant nothing,
But she doesn't seem to know that.
She turns around.

Is it possible?
She walks toward me,
Soft determination in her eyes.
"Before I leave," she says, "I just wanted you to know…"

Time stops.

She turns away, biting her lip,
Moving away from me; unbearable separation.
My words catch in my throat.

"I love you too," I rasp.

And she turns.
And through her tears, she smiles.