Perfectly Placed: Volume 1

By Michael Abreo

This is a collection of poems and journal entries written over the span of seven years that tell most of the story of some of Michael’s most formative years. After trying to grieve the loss of his best friend, deal with the addictions his mother suffers, as well as navigating many young love romances, Michael, turns to his old journals and starts collecting the poetry he’s written.

For the sake of clarity, the Him parts are written to be about one great love but he is made of a combination of many. Despite promising himself to be the one to break his family’s generational legacy of trauma and addiction, while alone at a low point, he disappoints himself and proves himself wrong.

Michael must now build himself back up from the ground before the dirt can fill his grave with him in it. He must remind himself that everything happens for a reason and that there is no such thing as the wrong person, place, or time because all of those things made him who he is.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Austin Macauley Publishers
• Release date: May 24, 2024
• ISBN: 9781638296744

Michael Abreo

Michael Abreo is a 23-year-old artist who’s been journalling and writing for as long as he can remember. He wrote these as a teen to cope with love, loss, and his family’s generational cycle of addiction. Through his writing, he was able to heal from trauma and grow into someone he felt was worthy of love and loving.

Book preview

About the Author

Michael Abreo is a 23-year-old artist who’s been journalling and writing for as long as he can remember. He wrote these as a teen to cope with love, loss, and his family’s generational cycle of addiction. Through his writing, he was able to heal from trauma and grow into someone he felt was worthy of love and loving.

Dedication

Charlie

Chelsea

Her

The last one

And every single person who fueled me by telling me that I wasn’t capable of doing great things. To the sources of such creativity and inspiration.

Copyright Information ©

Michael Abreo 2024

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other non-commercial uses permitted by copyright law. For permission requests, write to the publisher.

Any person who commits any unauthorized act in relation to this publication may be liable to criminal prosecution and civil claims for damages.

Ordering Information

Quantity sales: Special discounts are available on quantity purchases by corporations, associations, and others. For details, contact the publisher at the address below.

Publisher’s Cataloging-in-Publication data

Abreo, Michael

Perfectly Placed

ISBN 9781638296737 (Paperback)

ISBN 9781638296744 (ePub e-book)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2024902451

www.austinmacauley.com/us

First Published 2024

Austin Macauley Publishers LLC

40 Wall Street, 33rd Floor, Suite 3302

New York, NY 10005

USA

[e-mail]

[phone]

Acknowledgment

Thank you to the ones who lifted me up and praised me but more importantly:

Thank you to everyone who ever broke my heart, put me down, or left me.

I realize now that I am worth more than you made me feel.

Chapter One The Firsts

Part One

Him

The First Glance

I gazed upon your eyes in the moment that I first saw you.

Like cliche stars that shone on the deepest darkest depths of the ocean.

You didn’t look back toward me,

but there was a distinct moment where you knew I was watching you from afar.

It was when I realized that I wanted to be near you.

There was a comfort behind your eyes, like silk pillows,

or oversized sweatshirts.

I didn’t know that I was in love with you,

not just yet.

But I knew that you were going to be important to me.

The First Day

The first time I saw you, you were coming in late. Made up an excuse about the train coming just as you were getting to the tracks, but we all knew that the train never took that long. You told our teacher that you didn’t care that you were late. But that he should be grateful that you were there at all, because you had much more important things that you were doing in your life.

Like dance classes, music lessons, and I’d learn later that your parents were separating.

You had a million things on your mind, and the first day of a class you would probably never be present for, was not anywhere near the top of your priorities. But I was glad that you decided to come.

I was grateful that you were there at all.

And even though I didn’t know you yet, I knew that I was going to.

And so I went home and schemed. Thought of all the ways that I could plant myself into the seat beside yours, despite you sharing a table with someone already. I asked my mom for money to buy a couple final things for the new school year and she, trying to fix our rocky history, gladly gave me $100.

And so, the next day when class started, and I knew you weren’t going to be there for a couple more minutes, I bribed your table partner to sit at my table. He took most of my money before telling me that he would have done it for free since I just wanted to be with my friend. And then you came in.

Mad and in a facade of happiness, staring at your phone as if it had the answer to life. And I made up a lie about why he changed his seat, saying that he gave me money because he wanted to be alone. I later used that leftover money to buy you lunch and that was the beginning of our friendship.

Our First Kiss

Movies will show that during the scene of the main characters first kiss, there is a moment, in which everything around the characters completely slows down. Time essentially stops in place as they intertwine all of their passion with the most loving kiss that they will ever have.

The most memorable kiss they will ever have.

And yet when you first placed your lips on mine, as they were crossed by hairs no finer than a peach’s, and softer than a plush, feather pillow, I was astounded by the slow-motion of my parents talking in the room above us. The way that the room got completely quiet and I couldn’t hear the television while our favorite show played in the speakers around us. It was better than how movies would suggest.

I wanted the moment to never end, but as it