Avoid love. You weren't looking. Then there was them.

A scarlet poppy moves in the evening air. Some things happen anyway.

One more coffee.

Neither of you wanted to leave. You forgot what time it was.

After hours.

Let the world wait. You forgot what time it was.

The pause.

For once, the world could wait.

You kept the little things.

A receipt. A flower. That whole evening.

Between the pages.

Still here. A flower. A page. A way to remember.

Small proof.

A whole evening in a pocket.

Just one more look.

1:13. Nothing yet.

Blue hour.

Even the rain knew. Every light looked like a way back.

In the margins.

You wrote around what you meant.

Almost said it.

You wrote: I wish you were here. You left it unsent.

All the unsaid things.

Almost everything. The words stayed on the page.

The address.

Every mile. Still you. Even the distance knew your name.

Us.

Every route got longer.

Almost home.

Neither of you took the shortcut.

The detour.

Nowhere to be. Except a little closer.

Your side.

Still empty.

Between trains.

You counted the spaces between.

The space between.

An ocean between. You were only a seat away.

You put it away.

That should have been that. But there was the memory again.

What stayed.

Not quite gone. Some things never fit in a drawer.

And there you were.

In everything.

The familiar.

Ordinary places. Always you.

Let the light in.

Maybe stay. Some doors were never really closed.

The spare cup.

You never stopped setting a place.

Stay a little longer.

Nowhere else. The coffee could wait.

Again.

Some things find their way back.

Love.

You saved them a place.