Unmasked

You unmask me and I am no longer afraid.
I let my secret spill freely from my lips and I give you sad smiles when I tell you of all I've lost.
You hold my gaze and watch me, quiet, as I tell you of all the ways this world has broken me and you never look away.
Around you, perhaps because of you, I am not ashamed of my past or my broken, jagged pieces.
I am not ashamed of my fears or my doubts and I let the tears come because with you, I am not ashamed of them either.
With you, it's easy to be myself.
I don't have to put on a good face, and I can be happy or heartbroken or giddy or devastated and you support me equally in each case.
You unmask me, and I thought I would be afraid to show you who I am, but I'm not afraid at all.
I am strong and brave and fearless now, because of you, around you.
And I know that when the world comes crashing in, you will hold my hand and I will not be ashamed because you are the face I do not have to hide from.