Caged Love: Poems of Us

Caged Love: Poems of Us

A Journey Through Love, Hurt, and Healing

—

Preface

This is not a fairytale.

This is not the kind of love story that ends with a ring, a promise, or forever.

This is the story of a love that began with sweetness, turned bitter, and kept me caged.

I write these poems not as a victim, not as someone helpless, but as someone who survived her own silence. These words are pieces of me—my fears, my questions, my numbness, and my hope.

If you find yourself here, trapped in the same cage, may these pages remind you: you are not alone.

—

Part I – The Beginning

The Unexpected Arrival

You came when I wasn’t looking,

a sudden knock on a tired heart.

At first, it felt like destiny—

you were the answer to my silent prayers.

Those First Few Months

Gentle hands, soft words,

your care wrapped around me like sunlight.

I believed in forever then,

when love still looked like effort.

Believing in Us

I built dreams with your name on them,

painted futures across my mind’s sky.

I thought we were endless,

I thought we were true.

—

Part II – Cracks

Effort Fades

The calls grew shorter,

the gestures disappeared.

Love, once loud, became a whisper—

and then, a silence.

No Longer Priority

I sat waiting,

but your family came first,

strangers before me,

and I learned where I stood.

His Family, Not Me

You lifted them high,

while I stayed in the shadows.

I was not your choice,

only your afterthought.

—

Part III – Bruises

Shouting Walls

Your voice cracked the air,

shaking my quiet into dust.

Love shouldn’t sound like thunder,

but yours always did.

Words That Hit

Your curses cut deeper

than any blade.

Every insult left me smaller,

a ghost of the woman I was.

Hands That Hurt

When words weren’t enough,

your hands spoke anger.

And I—foolish—

called it love anyway.

The Cage

I hold the key,

yet I do not run.

Love, or habit, or fear—

they chain me here.

—

Part IV – The Ring That Wasn’t

Proposal Out of Exhaustion

You said you asked me to marry you

only because I kept asking.

Not love, not choice,

just silence dressed as a ring.

Not a Promise, But a Muzzle

Marriage was never your vow,

only your way to shut me up.

But I never wanted silence—

I only wanted forever.

Silenced by “I Love You”

You speak the words,

but they ring hollow.

Love is not supposed to feel

like begging for scraps.

Poisoned Yes

Even the memory of your yes

tastes bitter now.

What good is a promise

born from exhaustion?

—

Part V – Myself Against Myself

Anger at My Reflection

I hate myself for staying,

for loving a cage,

for holding my own chains.

Loving My Cage

I told myself it was love,

but it was only fear.

Fear of leaving,

fear of being alone.

The Cold Heart I Became

You froze me numb,

and I let you.

Now I don’t feel,

I only endure.

—

Part VI – Unbreaking

Unbreaking

My heart cracks,

but cracks let the light in.

I am not shattered forever.

The First Step

Leaving is a whisper,

a thought I rehearse.

One day, it will be action.

Self-Love

I must learn to hold myself

the way you never did.

Gentle, patient, whole.

Bloom

Even a flower in a cage

will find a way to grow.

So will I.

How to Heal

Piece by piece,

I gather myself back.

The mirror will love me again.

—

Part VII – Uncertain Futures

Convenience

Are we lovers,

or only tenants of routine?

You pay the bills,

I pay with silence.

The Question

Do we love each other still,

or just pretend we do?

The answer hides

in the spaces between us.

No Tomorrow

I can’t see a future,

only this endless today.

A house, a cage,

but never a home.

Que Sera, Sera

I stopped imagining futures.

They hurt too much.

Whatever will be, will be—

even if it breaks me.

The Ending We Live In

Perhaps this is it:

not love, but survival.

Convenience disguised as devotion,

habit wearing the mask of love.

—

Afterword

Love is supposed to be gentle.

Love is supposed to be safe.

But sometimes, love becomes the very thing that breaks us.

This book is not about him.

It’s about me—

the girl who stayed too long,

the woman who learned to write her way back to herself.

If you are reading this and you feel the sting of recognition, may these words remind you:

Your heart deserves peace.

Your soul deserves freedom.

And you deserve

a love that doesn’t cage you.