January 2023, you let me try on wedding dresses.
Not because we were planning anything soon,
but because it made me smile.

I remember the way the fabric whispered as I moved,
the mirrors catching glimpses of a future I longed for,
a quiet daydream,
wrapped in white,
stitched with hope.

And for a moment, everything felt right.
Like maybe someday, we could have it all.

But looking back, I see what I didn’t then.
I see the pressure, the weight, the quiet fear it stirred in you.
Had I known it felt heavy on your shoulders,
I would have never placed it there.

I didn’t want a promise.
I just wanted to dream with you.
And even if it was fleeting,
it was one of the softest dreams I’ve ever had.

January 2023