The Thief & The Beggar

You are the thief, and I am the beggar.

You slipped into my life with hands softer than fate,

and left carrying everything I thought belonged to me.

My heart.

My quiet.

Every wandering thought between sunrise and sleep.

Now every breath feels borrowed,

for I swear you've stolen the air from my lungs,

only to return it sweeter

when your lips speak my name.

If loving you is a crime,

then let the evidence pile high.

Fingerprint every corner of my soul.

Leave nothing untouched.

Take the pieces of me

I never knew how to carry.

Steal my fears until courage is all that's left.

Pick the locks from every door I've built around my heart,

and rob me blind of loneliness.

You are the thief,

and I am the beggar,

holding out empty hands

not asking for my treasures back,

but pleading,

Please...

Take another heartbeat.

Steal another dream.

Pocket every tomorrow until they all belong beside you.

For I have discovered the strangest kind of poverty:

to own a heart

that isn't already in your hands.

So rob me again.

Leave me with nothing

except your laughter echoing through my chest,

your eyes colouring every ordinary day,

and the impossible fortune

of being hopelessly,

joyfully,

ruined by your love.