For longer than necessary

I lingered in a state of denial
identified by others...

as a much deeper
emotional configuration

-but time

-memories

and each catastrophic ending

had me contemplating
what exactly
was the most sensible explanation

why
the first time I saw your smile
salt mixed with water ran
from my heart
to my pores

and how the sound of your voice
was lithium to my soul

regulating my mood
with
each word spoken

or the day you asked for my hand

how quickly the krypton
ran through my veins
making my cells as light as nitrogen

simultaneously
my legs transformed into lead
and had me walking toward you
lightheaded

as if I lost all the potassium
in my blood

instant tin woman

but chemistry is painfully delicate
often times
very unstable

so here I sit safe
in the confines of lead
protected

imprisoned

from what the romantics call
love