Nervousness standing on the doorstep

Compromise, standing just inside

Despite invitation, I politely insisted that the evening ended there

Over days, weeks, months then years

Things developed with an increasing sense of inclusion

Occasional clues of a chosen past, secrets of my modern Mona Lisa

The penny drops, indifferent to past present or future

Shared excitement, shared passion, shared intimacy

A time of normality, a time of exceptions and shared acceptance

Times of accepted exceptional normality

Thick fluffy comforting summer clouds

Ever present, yet simultaneously, fleeting forms in clear blue skies

Each cloud framed with an unspoken silver lining

Progressive advancement of growth and expanding boundaries

Each box ticked forming stories, like the timeline rings of trees

Message received, to rescue or maybe a pre-arranged test

Trips to the seaside and cinema visits

An evening punctured with a 1 am call of planned reassurance

A weekend away concluded with being picked up from the station

Wardrobes of Narnia supposed secrecy behind supposed closed doors

In line with everything time runs its course

Clouds disappear forming memories and trees fall revealing their stories

And we are just left with the wonder of it all