kaeru

156 23 8
                                        

⌠ 1 ⌡

I can see the tree from the classroom window.

It sways gently.

I can almost picture

a pink blob below it.


The room's quiet,

except for the scribble of pencils

and pages flipping.

Sometimes

a chair scrapes the floor.

The teacher's voice drones on.

Takeshi's in his seat

near the door.

Won't look at me.

I'm almost glad he doesn't.


Chalk scrapes away.

The teacher continues.

Something about triangles.

Two angles.

One answer.

I want to laugh.


... it's not fair.





⌠ 2 ⌡

I stall after class.

It's a familiar path.

Not a thing out of place.

The same path,

the door,

the library.

The stillness of books.

They stayed the same

when nothing else did.

My hiding spot.

Loneliness felt safe.

Each faded cover,

each turned page, 

each old crease.

A different universe.

The words were my friends, 

then.


Since

when did I expect

this place to have

someone's presence?

Since when did I miss

their quiet laughter?

Our stupid conversations.

Spanning everything

and nothing.


Our table.


My fingers brush over wood.

Cool to the touch.


Something tugs at my lips.

Even now.


She isn't here.

They aren't either.

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