Conditional

conditional

scrolling down the terms and conditions,

skipping past all of the details,

overlooking fine print—

ignoring the plethora of information.

culminating in a small, vacant box—

you choose to click, 

filling it with blissful ignorance—

hopeful and rushed euphoria.

*

you feel as if reading each line will cause a deadpan, dull, diluted feeling of mind-numbing nuance—

as if the warnings in between the lines of dullness don’t appear in red.

you choose to click, 

ignoring the glaring text that warns against incompatibility, boundaries and conditions.

an innate human instinct to live vicariously through euphoria and disembodied uncertainty.

as if outcomes are certain,

as if warnings are simply just anomalies,

as if terms were just figments of maybes.

*

we look for solace on platforms that offer densely packed terms and conditions and wonder why 

breaking 

            them 

ends in tragedy—

the heartbreaking realization that love is conditional. 

dumbfounded by the loss of control, 

irritated by the inevitable loss of access,

staring blankly at our screen 

asking—

why we were banned.

copyright © micah hill 2025