Read Me Wrong — Liva

Got home a little after eleven
Kicked my shoes off by the door
Opened the window to the evening
Let the spring air in, finally

A few dates in, I had a script
The words for what I'd say tomorrow
He's nice, I'd already drafted it
The same way I always do

But somewhere between the second drink
And the long walk back to the bridge
I went quiet for a moment
Just to breathe, just to think

And you read it as a question
And you read it as a wound
You filled the pause with what you wanted
Not with what I'd shown you

You talked to soothe a thing
That hadn't even arrived yet
You made my quiet mean something
And it didn't, it didn't

You read me wrong
You filled my silence with your story
You took my pauses personally
You couldn't let the moment be
You read me wrong
You read me wrong

I watched you across the table
Working hard to hold the evening
Asking if I was alright
Every time I stopped to feel

You needed me to give you something
A laugh, a nod, a reassurance
You needed the silence to mean
That you were doing well

I'm not angry, I'm just tired
Of being someone's evidence
Of being measured by my answers
When the answer was just air

You read me wrong
You filled my silence with your story
You took my pauses personally
You couldn't let the moment be
You read me wrong
You read me clear

I wanted someone who could sit
On the quiet side of me
Who didn't need a reason
For the spaces where I rest

Who knew that not all stillness
Is a door that needs unlocking
Who could let the silence stay
Without making it about them

You read me wrong
You filled my silence with your story
You took my pauses personally
You couldn't let the moment be
You read me wrong
And I'm letting it be done

The window's open, the kitchen's quiet
The night doesn't need anything from me
The silence here is mine again
The kind I came home for