Solve for Y

it’s hard to do math when you’re depressed

my expressions cannot be isolated

i can’t solve for “y"

the only “y" i want to solve for

is the reason for the division symbols

i feel the need to etch on my skin

there are too many variables

for my mental calculator

i keep pressing “enter”

but am only greeted with “error”

the tightening in my chest i get

whenever i see an inequality

reminds me of the “less than” sign

you put on my forehead

you were a mathematical man

black and white, right or wrong

i read each message from you like a word problem

there were problems

but you were calculus and i got lost at algebra

doodling shapes without looking for the perimeter

i never had a decent math teacher before

so when i was left on my own

i felt lost, afraid

you could see that fear

my test anxiety

the panic attacks every other night

you got tired of explaining the theories

and i got tired of not having the answers

i hope you meet a girl who loves the black and white

who will solve for the slope of your biceps

whose values plug perfectly into your equations

i know you never asked to be my tutor

it’s just that i never really seemed to understand math

and you never really understood me