If only a girl could have

a damn friendship

Why must every glance

at the opposite gender

be a crush or a squish

Why must every story told

that even involves their name

signal to those around me

that I am infatuated

Why must every hug

or shared bench

or even mere proximity

mean that there is something

more than platonic

Why must every conversation

be a confession of love

and not just a damn conversation?

I am so sick of tired

of people assuming

that we are “more than friends”