obviously authorial intent is what it is but until i looked this song up so i could post it i thought the lyrics were "willy plus michael" instead of "lily plus michael"; learning that kind of took the wind out of my sails. i thought the song was like, this powerful description of the angst and grief of a teenaged love for a closeted gay man who couldnt come out for you, who instead lived an inauthentic life marrying a woman and having children.

instead it's a story about straight love. it is what it is