(inspired by Natsuki Kizu’s GIVEN)
By Jackie Li
you are the winter
and he is the snow.
you are subtle
silent brittle
bleak callous
cold and hard to approach.
he is soft
soothing beautiful
breath-taking cool
caring and loved by all.
yet somehow,
his surreal and delicate snowflakes
have fallen in love with
your unfeeling winter.
people know about the red string
tied around your pinkies;
they know about your intertwined hands
and intertwined hearts.
they do not, and will not separate snow and winter.
because,
without the winter, the snow is…
what is snow without the winter?
***
they do not separate snow and winter.
the winter will go wherever the snow
flies and flutters to
following behind quietly, their hands locked together.
(don’t cry. i’m here for you. look, just hold my hand, and we’ll be alright.)
they do not separate snow and winter.
because as time passes
and the snow melts and leaves
the winter finds itself disappearing too.
(…)
they do not separate snow and winter.
the red string makes it clear
that separation is not an option.
(no matter what, we’ll always be together, right? just you and me against the world…)
they do not separate snow and winter.
…why?
because the snow
cannot survive
without the winter.
***
they do not separate snow and winter.
because though the snow is
soft soothing beautiful breath-taking
cool caring and loved by all,
without the winter to freeze him in time
he is nothing but a mess
a puddle of insecurities
a raging blizzard of anxiety and fear
spurred on by the lack of someone who will let him
hold them tight let him be the one
in control give him a semblance of
being in control because control
is the one thing he lacks
and will continue to lack
for the rest of his life.
(you know that i love you…you matter more to me than my own life)
he is the snow
constantly shoved and pushed around by the wind
constantly broken and beaten down into the ground
constantly fixed and focused on all the small details
losing sight of the bigger picture
as soon as the
winter leaves.
(if you really love me, why don’t you just DIE for me then?)
because that day when you left,
harsh words spilling out of your mouth
he decided that he would too.
the next day,
you found him
melted crumbled
hanging from a broken red thread,
unable to withstand the heat
of his devotion and self-hatred.
(i love you…so i did.)
***
he is the snow
and you are the winter.
they do not separate snow and winter.
they do not separate snow and winter.
…why?
only a winter’s story
can tell.
Jackie Li is a 15-year old sophomore student currently living in Singapore; she enjoys writing and brainstorming ideas during her free time. Apart from jotting things down in her notebook or furiously typing away, you can find her drawing or in the neighbourhood swimming pool. Her writing usually takes inspiration from one thing or another – she loves expanding on existing concepts and adding her personal flair to them. Contact her @ jackie42040.li@gmail.com
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