A Fireside Fantasy

The moon is high over the trees,

This is probably the last warm night we’ll see.

There are leaves softly tumbling in the breeze.

It’s such a beautiful autumn night,

Yet my heart feels a gentle squeeze.

.

Orange flames lick softly at the blue

As they crawl across the darkened wood

Each log is strategically stacked within the firepit.

The colors mesmerize.

.

My mind drifts

To the memory of you,

Back to our brief interlude.

To all the things I never got to say to you.

I wonder now if you were here

What would you want to say?

What would you do?

.

The memory of you enchants,

And I longingly wish that you were here.

I wish I could lean forward and pull you near.

That Fate would give us another chance.

That I could take you by the hand,

Confess to what’s in my heart.

.

If only you were here.

Perhaps we’d dance beside this fire,

As spellbound as we once were.

The flames swaying to our rhythm,

Orange, violet, and blue, in constant motion.

Maybe we’d sit and talk for hours,

As we had so many times before.

My heart lightens at the very notion.

.

Gazing into the flames,

Your eyes appear.

Do you remember that night?

When you pulled me in so closely,

Told me everything would be all right?

That you wouldn’t leave,

You’d stay with me through the night?

I knew I was safe in your arms.

.

You held on so tight,

Our hearts beat in sync.

I didn’t know what the morning held,

Just that with you, I didn’t fear it.

Your eyes held mine,

Then all I knew was the taste of your lips,

The feel of your breath as you slowly moved to my neck.

.

I was lost in the moment,

Captivated by your kiss.

There isn’t a second of that night that I don’t miss.

Each of us was as insatiable as the other.

.

I’m not sure who was the flint,

Who was the tinder,

Only that our flame, once lit,

Seemed unquenchable.

We were a perfect fit,

Two souls transcended to infinite heights.

.

If only you were here,

Maybe we could revisit?

Does your heart ever drift back to that night?

The one you said you’d always remember?

Do you wonder what we could’ve had,

If circumstances had been different?

Oh, if only you were here.

.

So, caught up in the yearning for what was,

And what could’ve been

That the soft crunch of leaves in the here and now

Jolted me back to the present.

I reached for the lantern at my side

When your hand covered mine.

.

As your smoky voice washed over me,

With a slightly chiding chuckle,

“I wondered how long it’d take you to hear me.

You know, these leaves make a great early warning system.

If you’d been listening.”

.

I smiled at your words,

Wondering if I’d somehow summoned you

With my fervent hopes that you were here.

.

“Where were you just now?”

I rose to my feet and wrapped my arms around your neck,

‘With you. Where else?

Where have you been?’

.

You brushed my hair off my forehead and leaned in for a kiss.

“Really now?

Well, do tell? As I’ve only just arrived.

What did I miss?”

‘Hopefully me? Since you’re here.’

.

Each leaping shadow seemed to hold its breath

Watching in anticipation of what would come next.

Only the late-season fireflies know what happened that night.

Perhaps an owl saw us dancing by the firelight,

But they won’t tell.

They’ll keep the secrets

Of our magical autumn night.

. . .

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This poem was originally published on Medium.