The opening line was brilliant: "I've been breathing alone for what seems like ages now". What a clever and refreshing way to capture being alone. And then you nailed it again with the repetition of the line later, altered,"I've been breathing alone for what seems like ages now."

There was so much tender, and relatable about this re-learning to love, poem.

I really liked this piece because it speaks many truths about finding a new love you don't want to go in with your heart wide open because then you'll get hurt again but you want to go in with an open heart or you'll never love again, right?

You show how lonely you have been in these line- 'I've been breathing alone for what seems like ages now,
Solitude and work being my only friends' because to me it's like you go to work day in day out and that's it, like nothing else matters.

I like the change in pace near the middle because at the beginning it was slow yet steady and set that lonely, sombre mood but then it picked up much like a beating heart would when you find that love you have been waiting for.

This stanza-
'Maybe that's why I reserve that little word from you,
What if you're just another mistake to wear
On my already covered up sleeve...
Maybe you're more then my insecurities though.' is a full of emotion and I feel the reservation of the word love on your part has made a huge difference in your life because it's stopped you getting hurt more times. The link to there being a burden reminds me of the quote 'don't wear your heart on your sleeve' because it gets us hurt. I feel the then should be than like in this line 'Even worse what if it's greater then anything I've written before.'

Linking love to falling out of a parachute at the end is really good because as you say it's scary to go into love when it's one sided, my interpretation anyway.

All in all, a good write and enjoyable read.

Em