both of us
linked by invisible wires and lines that snaked
through the air
across town
agreed
there is no time

it held us there.

early morning
tying shoes and searching for lost unmentionables
we cursed it
breathed its name like an epithet
wove it in with all the rest
of the words you shouldn’t say
in public

our contempt was palpable
-if tearing the calendar
and crushing the clock
could make it stop
we would have.

it is inked into my skin
indelible, the fact
infinity

within the walls that keep us safe
and warm, as long as the wind is gentle
dancing past the cracks
and the gaps between the window frames
and glass
it takes hold again and we are
bound by this,
a measured step that he
with his musical ear and i
with my careful syntax breath
cannot fall into
without tripping
grasping
at each other
slaves in competition
for the cherished spot
at the master’s
feet.