Last call

 

Last Call

 

The phone rang

just a little past two.

 

I was lying

in the darkness,

my thoughts

keeping me awake.

 

Pushing the talk button,

we were connected

by silence,

 

then,

 

words slightly slurred...

“Listen to the madness.”

 

She was asleep

next to me,

so, I moved into

the next room,

dressed only in my boxers,

shivering from the cold.

 

“It’s me, Mack.”

 

“I know,”

I answered

back.

 

We had met

a few months before,

at the four-fourty;

spilling drinks

and philosophies

over the bar.

 

“Sorry I’m calling

this late,” he offered.

 

“It’s okay,

I was awake.”

 

then,

more silence...

 

I tried to curl up,

as protection

from the cold air.

 

“Listen to the madness...”

he repeated.

 

Then,

I waited…

 

a few more moments,

 

“I’m listening,”

I said.

 

I was thirsty,

so, I reached

for the rum and coke

I had never quite finished

earlier that night.

 

It made sense,

in it’s way;

until Cuba

is actually free,

I will always leave

a little bit of hope

left in my glass.

 

That first sip,

like the first rain

following a drought

 

in my mouth,

words began to grow,

thoughts began to flow

trying to make sense

of all the connections

we all share.

 

“I’ve been thinking,

 we should collaborate,

that’s what I’m calling my book:

 

‘Listen to the Madness.’”

 

Then, more silence…

 

“Okay Mack...

I’ll talk to you soon,”

I told him as I hung up.

 

Moving back

towards my bed,

I put Miles

on the stereo,

 

a more modern

day Mozart,

creating sense

and life’s songs,

from the chaos

we all exist in.

 

Crawling beneath

my blankets,

I kept shaking

from being

cold.

 

I tried moving

closer to her,

feeling for the warmth

of her company;

 

but, her back was turned towards me,

and I couldn’t sleep on my side.

 

Lying back

in the darkness,

still a little thirsty,

the music

quietly calmed

my thoughts.

 

Then,

I slept,

and I wept,

as I dreamt

of all the dry days,

and all the dark nights,

which lay

                  still,

  up ahead.

Reviews

[Mistral Bilgera]

this is scary.... it has a tense air surrounding it. nice work...