Manoeuvre

From the moment we met
you were reaching inside me
sifting the detritus
and grabbing at my heart
but it shimmied and swirled
just out of your reach.

And the whorl of your fingerprints
drew constellated patterns
on the surface of my neck
until I broke free
from the danger of choking
on words I hadn’t said.

And when you moved to smother me
in an embrace of disguised affection,
I positioned myself behind you
in the blinking of an eye
with a manoeuvre of such grace
that Heimlich would be proud.