love is giving the last drop of water, when i'm parched

each time, of our time
we hug ever so tight,
but tight never seems enough.
the moment of silence.
i rest my head on your shoulder, thinking:
i miss you, even
before our day is gone.

the way you've unconsciously started to
spell, just like i do.
lyfe. fud. kickass. okie. tho. 
i can't remember when
you made your way into my heart.
but the night you held me
as i was a crying wreck -
that was the night i could
already say those three words
i'd never uttered before,
to any other counterparts.

i clutch your arm,
koala your side,
drink you in,
trace your collarbones,
& throw my arms around your neck -
how solid the feel of
skin to skin,
head against head,
face to face.
pressed lips
& the way your arms become
my jacket -
wrapping me warm.
eyes closed, praying:
God help me remember
this moment, & the next,
& forever after.

i wear you on my sleeve -
with you,
i wear my heart on my sleeve
& pray for long escalator rides.
your face cupped in my tiny hands -
i wish i could grasp you this concretely
in memories too.

two-thirds of the day i've dedicated to
growing, soaring -
higher, faster, greater, stronger!
explore, invest, hustle -
but i always come home
for the latter one-third
to you,
my homecoming -
irrespective of physical
or imagined form.

i've never known how it's like
to spend both (& full) days
of the weekend on adventures together -
like other couples.

even our relationship
is fraught with geographical distance -
spread across excruciating time frames
& punishing work/personal schedules.
spain. korea. army. even
within our tiny island home,
we're miles apart.

but sometimes, i still catch myself
tearing up -
because finally,
at twenty-one, i think
i know, i really think i do know
what love is.

you are love, who leads me
to the Love,
& whose love makes me
want to love
my loved ones
around me.
just by loving me,
with this genuine heart of yours.