He Happened to Her

She had a plan.

A straightforward plan

that involved getting her dream job

and her own place.

Then she would worry about love.

Right now, she does not bother with

the dating apps.

Any guy she seems interested in

she tells herself he probably already has a girlfriend… or boyfriend.

She had a plan

But then he derailed it.

Her simple,

step by step plan

was ruined by his gorgeous eyes, 

and generous smile.

She was still looking for her own place.

He had a place.

They shared that place often

staying overnight.

He cooked dinner

in a kitchen she hadn’t earned yet.

Left her toothbrush

by a sink that wasn’t hers.

She told herself it was just temporary.

That she was just resting

inside someone else’s stable life.

Her plans began to bend

but not break.

But soon

she stopped counting steps

and started counting his breaths.

Then it ended

And when it ended

it didn’t explode.

She simply returned to practicality.

To sending job applications,

searching apartments she couldn’t afford,

to a plan that had to be rewritten

after him.

She doesn’t call it love. 

She says

he happened to her,

a detour,

of something beautiful and real

that happened to her

before she was ready.