The Icicle Embrace

How a joke can leave another person cold

The Icicle Embrace

Two arms, viciously clasped me around the waste,
Like the claws of a swooping eagle for it’s prey,
And there they lingered for a while,
As my features turned to cold stone.
My friends stared as you did rest your head
Upon my shoulder, mock affectionately, with your hair,
Hair like the brushes of feathers against my cheek,
But you did not know how that had warmed me,
For on the inside my senses were aflame.
The smell and taste upon the air was silky and of summer fruits;
The gentle touches of your hair like waves rolling on the beach;
The hum inside my ears of a personal oblivion;
The buzz of touch quite out of reach.
But for now, I bottle my feelings and act as steel.
For you have never and shall never feel
What I have for you.
So leave me
Cold;
As ice,
As steel,
As my heart.