When I Wasn't Enough, I Still Stayed

I gave everything
and more
to people
who only wanted
pieces.

I stayed
long after
they stopped
looking at me
like I mattered.

I laughed
so they wouldn’t notice
the cracks.
I showed up
so they couldn’t say
I didn’t try.

But some hearts
are locked
from the inside.
And I never had
the key.

They told me
I was strong
as if that
made the silence
less loud.

I wanted to be
someone’s first choice.
But I was
their backup plan.

Their “maybe.”
Their “not now.”
Their “if things change.”

And still,
I stayed.

Not because
I lacked pride
but because
I had hope.

Now I look back
and see the version of me
who waited,
who hoped,
who broke quietly
in their absence.

And I want to tell him:
you were enough.
You were just
in the wrong place
with the wrong ones.