Poem: Not Just You and Me

When did you start breathing so evenly,
and how do you sleep so well these days?
When did your heart start feeling so light,
and how did your smile become so genuine?

Maybe you are through that tunnel,
one that you had to travel alone.
And yet you weren't alone, were you?
How could you be so lucky?

Those lone walks under the scorching sun,
that you had convinced yourself you liked;
who was waiting for you in the room
hoping you would be back safely?

That long night when you were ready
to drown in despair as you usually did;
who hugged you and reminded you
that you were never alone in this?

And when your world had crumbled,
when you were numbingly afraid to get up;
who gave you a place to get yourself together?
Who saved you from yourself?

All the times you thought you were alone,
there was always a hand, wasn't there?
You were the one scared to hold it;
afraid it will suddenly pull back.

And I don't blame you for the hesitation.
Because after all, dear friend,
in the most 'life' way possible,
you had to learn how to spell 'Abandonment'.

I know you wanted to unlearn,
but it was not an action, it was a process.
And we both knew you weren't alone in it,
while the word was fading from your memory.

So maybe you were wrong after all.
Because now, at the end of the day,
as you are on the other end of the tunnel,
I know that you can see,
it was never just you and me.

- Sushant Kumar Das