Linger

 I.

You linger in me

Like the persistence

Of letters sent

But never received. 

II.

I wash our tea cups.

Wipe them dry. 

Hook them up. 

No tea warmed their insides. 

III.

I lay the plates. 

A dinner, for two. 

The steam rising in spirals. 

It grows cold. 

Uneaten, soggy, forgotten. 

IV. 

I inch towards the bedroom. 

Just one pillow, 

instead of two. 

I look for the other. 

V. 

But it sleeps, 

with all your

other things in the loft. 

Only Your absence lingers on.