You never look directly at me.

I noticed.

Always the side glance,
the careful little theft of vision—
as if catching me in the corner of your eye
doesn't count as looking.

Tell me, Red—

how did you teach mirrors
to avoid your gaze?

Because you've gotten damn good at it.

You can face everything
except the thing standing directly in front of you.

You can dress fear up as indifference,
call distance wisdom,
call silence control,
pretend your pulse isn't betraying
every clever little lie your mouth invents.

But your eyes—

your eyes are terrible fucking liars.

Maybe that's why you won't let them meet mine.

Maybe some truths become dangerous
when witnessed by two people at once.

Maybe you know exactly what would happen
if you stopped pretending
for five uninterrupted seconds
and simply looked at me.

Or maybe you're just not equipped
to stare into the sun.

I could understand that.

The sun doesn't apologize
for making people squint.

It doesn't dim itself
because somebody standing in the doorway
hasn't decided whether they want warmth
or an excuse to run back inside.

And neither will I.

I'm not asking you to worship me.

I'm asking you to quit acting
like you don't feel the heat
while standing there with smoke
curling from your clothes.

Because I see you, Red.

Not the performance.

You.

The frightened animal behind the ribs.
The woman who can apparently stare down the whole damn world
until the world stares back
with my eyes.

Then suddenly—

peripheral vision.

Sideways glances.

Anywhere but here.

Anywhere but me.

It's almost adorable.

Almost.

Because eventually
you have to stop blaming the mirror
for knowing your face.

Eventually
you have to admit
the sun wasn't chasing you.

You kept walking toward it.

So keep pretending you don't see me
if that makes your courage easier to carry.

Keep stealing those little sideways looks.

I'll notice every one.

But understand something:

I'm done translating fear
into rejection for you.

If you don't want the fire,
walk away from it.

But if you stay—

turn your fucking head
and look at me.