Will they stay?

Will they stay?

Sometimes I wonder
if the people who claim to love me,
claim to support me,
claim to adore me
will stay.

Will they stay
when they realize
I am tired of faking a smile?

That sometimes
I want to let the anger loose,
to stop holding my face still
when tears are already gathering
at the edge of my eyes.

I stay quiet
not because I have nothing to say,
but because I’m afraid
of the storm that might leave my mouth
if I start.

Will they stay
when they realize
I can be selfish too?

Selfish for peace.
Selfish for a little more love.
Selfish for someone
to understand me
without making me beg for it.

Will they stay
when they see
that I get tired too?

Tired of smiling.
Tired of meeting expectations.
Tired of carrying problems
that were never mine to solve.

Will they stay
when they realize
I need rest too,
that I need quiet,
that I need someone
to hold the weight for once?

Will they stay?

Sometimes I ask the question
like it might finally answer me.

But the truth sits quietly in my chest:

The ones who truly love me
won’t stay because I’m perfect.

They’ll stay
because I’m human.

By.ShadhHassan