If You Leave

Efrain Cajar

I

If you leave,
don’t say
“it wasn’t meant to be.”
Say you were scared
of something
that felt too real.

II

Don’t call it timing.
Don’t blame the distance.
Don’t hide behind
“maybe someday.”
Some days
don’t come back.

III

I didn’t love you
casually.
I loved you
like it mattered.
Like you mattered.
Like I was all in.

IV

You can survive
without love.
People do it
all the time.
But surviving
isn’t the same
as living.

V

We almost became
everything.
That’s the dangerous part.
Almost
hurts more
than never.

VI

I wasn’t asking
for perfect.
I was asking
for present.
For effort.
For stay.

VII

You don’t lose people
all at once.
You lose them
in hesitations.
In silence.
In not choosing.

VIII

And if you walk away,
walk honestly.
Don’t shrink
what we were
just so leaving
feels easier.

IX

Because I will remember
how your hand fit in mine.
How your voice
softened my storms.
How you said
“we’ll see.”

X

And maybe
we won’t.
Maybe this is it.
Maybe this is
the story
we almost told.

XI

But don’t pretend
it was nothing.
Don’t pretend
I was easy to forget.
Love like that
leaves marks.

XII

If you leave,
leave brave.
Leave knowing
I would have stayed.
And that
is the difference
between us.

  • Author: Efrain Cajar (Offline Offline)
  • Published: February 27th, 2026 00:02
  • Category: Love
  • Views: 6
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Comments +

Comments1

  • sorenbarrett

    Perception is everything and lying to oneself to ease the fall and deceive the soul we all do even the brave. A beautiful poem that presents two points of view. Nicely written

    • Efrain Cajar

      Thanks a lot.
      For me it has been a challenge to publish because there was a risk that the essence of the poem would be lost, which I see that you have understood when you refer about the two points of view.

      • sorenbarrett

        You are most welcome. Fear not to publish because it may not be understood, I would guess that a majority of the people do not get the meaning I intended from most of mine but they get a meaning none the less and that is good enough.



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