Rendezvous

When we opened our eyes
You were gone,
But we wondered how long you’d
Had your foot out the door.
On the stairs, a letter,
Cryptic, in hieroglyphics—
Tried? we did
But who could decipher?
And the sun’s spicule fingers
Fermented our hopes green…
Until memories faded into
the muffled voices of dream.
Then, tender marrow,
dissolved into cold, iron indifference.
Lightning eyes, we stepped out of line,
Because we would’ve died
Waiting for deliverance.

We weren’t ruthless, but we grew fangs,
Which we cloaked with the charm.
We weren’t cruel, but we were
Loyal to grudges over alms.
And when we heard of your name from the town,
Our faces would catch in a clownish grin,
You were the ancient inside joke
That united all your children.

So what now? Here you are?
The monstrous lore of mythology!
The reason we sit up in the night,
Talking in our sleep
About some itching evil of our times
Where a darkness looms in the corner of
Our minds,
Leaving only a sour taste on our tongues
Of a tune left unsung
For the rest of our lives.
How dare you appear then?
Gargling your sins between your teeth;
So rehearsed, a record repeating endlessly
The same fucking lie,
Listen, we never asked for an explanation.
We wanted an apology.