The speaker of this piece is caught between tenderness and fear. The opening lines sound almost defiant: "hate me, love me, do what you want with me." But the real problem, they say, isn't the town itself, it's the people in it. The title, "envy," points to the speaker's belief that the hostility they face comes from jealousy rather than anything they've done wrong.
At the heart of the poem is a small, sweet moment: a girl rests her hand on the speaker's shoulder, and their heart flutters. Almost immediately, that happiness is shadowed by the knowledge that others think they "deserve to die." The poem suggests the speaker's feelings are seen as a threat, and the speaker even apologizes for it, which is quietly heartbreaking. By the end, though, they hold on to a stubborn confidence: their love is stronger than anyone else's. The mood is a mix of longing, hurt, and fragile pride, with the rhyming couplets giving it a plain, confessional feel.