Invalids
Petrichor
When the chair leaned too far, it rolled over
Anything inside it so rolling over, too

Errant condition an eager reflex tried to stall
Everyone is waiting, you don't want to do this at all

Dust on the dining set
Nobody sits here

Think of when we said we’d stay
Think of the times outside
Anything could have been inches away
And we couldn't see it
(any place should we choose to lie
No one would find us (out))
And I don't have to learn from this mistake
And I don’t have to learn from anything

We tried to hold, long as we could
To our reflections in the water
Went under

Tried to build a fence to keep the geese from walking through the yard
But geese can fly

There were empty houses down the street
We sneaked inside them
There were times in the basement
We could swear there was someone upstairs then
(odd echo, silent stone)
You said we had best keep still
You said part of you wished they would come for you anyway
There were empty trestles
Where the train used to run through here
Then someone fell off
And died
You faced it staying up all night
You wanted to go there
I hated the black hole
I hated the skin surface overturning
Uncovering all the awful things that crawl around inside

I tried to hide the fact I came upstairs
Hoping I would see you
Tried to hide the fact I gave up coming to see
"The worst is over"

Twisting and stepping over my stomach
I saw you walking back from my turning shoulder
(everyone's waiting)
Sat against the wall in the hallway last night
You asked me if I had felt a thing
What could I say?