I can hear your sandals coming

From miles and miles away

Your stride makes evident your move

Sometimes you come too fast

And I fear I'll be found out

But as luck has it

I'm saved at the last moment.

Lying in my bed

I hear your shrill voice call out

Dread surges through my body

Like electricity through a cord

Sheer panic sprints up the ridges of my spine

For the tone of your voice

Wields a heavy façade

Choked by uncertainty

Blinded by apprehension

I play out all the worst case scenarios

Like a broken record in my head

I try to plan ahead

For when I turn the corner

The look on your face

Is enough to make my heart stop

I search a guilty conscience

Wondering what the punishment for independence is

Oh, what a price to pay

For a simple mistake

Nightmare filled sleep

Tossing and turning until my muscles ache

Tangled in the sheets

Are the broken shards of a dream

A dream of freedom lies out of reach

And the willpower to make it through

I can only hope that one day I'll escape

And embrace myself as a whole

No longer torn to pieces by this

Mentally induced phobia

Of you