Er, you could say things have changed twice.  Shortly after I posted these in 2007, he and I resumed our friendship.  We'd meet at least once a week, and our conversations would last for hours.  I admit that it was somewhat naïve of me to overlook the fact that he'd never remember to call me or drop in when he said he would; his memory is notoriously short, and he always seemed to be glad to hear from me when I phoned.  Eventually, though, he just stopped answering the phone (I tried for about two months after our last conversation—he has a job that keeps him fairly busy at unpredictable times, so it wasn't unusual for him to be unreachable), and of course he never called me.  We haven't spoken in over a year.  So no happy ending there, I'm afraid—at least not in the traditional meaning of the phrase.  I do suspect, though, that I got off fairly easy, and though I don't really miss him that badly anymore, I remember him fondly and hope he's doing well.By the way, thanks for the review, and I'm sorry it took me so long to respond.  My old laptop finally gave up the ghost (I'd managed to resurrect it several times, but this time it's likely dead for good), and it took awhile for its replacement to come in.

Thank you for your review and for your kind words, though it's not quite a comfort to think that I'm not the only one who's hurting. After all, who likes to think that they've hurt someone they care for? But that is consistent with his personality; he's been known to simply avoid unpleasant situations before. What puzzles me, though, is that when we do speak (we've spoken a couple of times since these poems were posted), he's always saying that he'll call or he'll drop in for a visit—and he's the one who comes up with the idea, not me—but then he never actually does it. He's also said, and I quote, "Don't be a stranger. You know where to find me," and told me that I was welcome to visit him anytime. It's like he wants me to keep on showing up in his life, but he's reluctant to show up in mine. It's more than a little exasperating, and I'm getting to be too old for things like this.

In any case, thanks again for reviewing—and for speaking so kindly of the way I chose to express my frustration with a situation that I think is very deeply messed-up.

Thank you for your review, and I'm sorry that I've taken so long to respond. (The fact that there are reviews for "Dreaming" was a bit of a pleasant surprise—over the years I've noticed that my poetry doesn't seem to attract many readers.) The sonnet form is a particular favourite of mine, though I experiment with others, and my use of Elizabethan English came more or less by accident. I was an English major in university, and by sheer luck of the draw, most of the courses I had time for centred around the English Renaissance.

As for the relationship, such as it is...well, I meant what I said in the notes. I love him, but if he's willing to give up the friendship just because he's figured out that I have feelings for him that I've carefully kept out of our interactions, then I can certainly do without him.  Whatever happens, I know I'll be OK eventually.

Anyway, thanks for reviewing. I've read one or two of your sonnets as well, though I'm not sure I reviewed, and I found them to be well-written. It's nice to know that I may have managed to help to inspire someone else, however small my influence might have been.