There are things I felt so loudly that silence was the only way to hold them.
Not because they weren’t true, but because saying them would have changed everything.
I never said how often you crossed my mind when the lights went out.
How certain moments replayed themselves in my head like unfinished conversations.
How my body remembered you faster than my logic ever could.
I learned quickly that wanting something doesn’t mean it’s safe to name it.
Some feelings ask to stay unspoken, not out of fear, but out of self preservation.
Because once words exist, they demand answers.
And I already knew what yours would be.
So I kept it quiet.
I let it live in the late hours, in the space between sleep and honesty.
I let it be a feeling instead of a confession.
A pulse instead of a promise.
Not everything unsaid is regret.
Some things are restraint.
Some things are control.
Some things are proof that I finally knew when not to hand someone access they hadn’t earned.
I never said it.
And somehow, that was the most honest thing I could do.
Final Thought: What I Chose Not to Whisper
Silence isn’t always avoidance.
Sometimes it’s power choosing peace over proximity.
After Hours Disclaimer
This space is for feelings that didn’t get daylight approval.
Not invitations. Not confessions.
Just truths that came alive after dark and stayed exactly where they belonged.