metal mouth

you pop up around blind corners
crouch down behind open doors
always and forever appearing
just after i've stopped the game of hide and seek,
picked up my abandoned book
and cozied up to a chair.

the only thing i can count on
is the rush of renewed hope
and the sharp taste of metal
that floods my mouth
every time i glimpse a corner of your face
or a twist of your hair.

because you are liquid mercury
changing direction faster than i can keep up
always somehow ending up in my mouth
slipping past closed lips
finding the back door--
perhaps the one you've been hiding behind--
tangy yet somehow still sweet.

god, i have done my best,
but this time i'm going to stay in my chair
book in hand
eyes firmly on the page
so if there is something for me in this game
you're going to have to give me a clear sign
and stop playing around.