Long nights, early mornings,
and all the realizations in between

Feeling star-struck;
talking to my dog like she was a human,
and waiting one day for her to respond.

Playing “This Ain’t a Scene, It’s an Arms Race” whenever my parents were gone,
it made me feel like a rebel.

The adrenaline rush of almost getting caught;
the devastating blow of forgetting to cover up my tracks

Hiking up Bardstown road in thick tights, clashing clothes, and off-the-wall makeup,
all in 97 degree weather and just for fun

Getting busted in Kroger,
not for my best friend being in a shopping cart,
But for taking pictures

Red highlights that only seemed to last
for three days,
A black University of Indiana jacket that I never did find

Those ridiculous fingerless gloves
I only wore on at a time,
because that made it edgier

A first crush that took me three years to get over,
we both liked Green Day,
and we were made for each other, too

Crying in the rain,
so I couldn’t tell when the rain ended,
and where the tears started
I’m happier in Seneca Park alone anyway

If I had leaned a little more to the left,
I could have touched Craig Owens’s hand,
I saw him smile at me, though

Planning my marriage to Ryan Ross,
idolizing Gerard Way;
clinging to the idea that I was one step ahead,
of everyone else