Awake until your return

when I was sixteen
the prime of a teen
I’d ask for consent
to leave home to friends
there was the first shot
the already-rolled blunt
the 6:54 type of girls
there was the “jew” word
the “holy holy” reference
there was the guilt-trip
the urge to drag & sip
the “who will ever know?”
there were the late nights
the repeated missed calls
the fast bikes to go home
there were my mother’s eyes
which had no covered lids
until her son returned home
“I love you” is vague in words

Tomide Abdul