i dial your number

deep in the darkness,

a phone rings

i see you reach

for the receiver

i hear the smile

in your voice

my lips quaver

as i share my day

my eyes mist

as you tell me

it’s not the end of the world

and everything

will be okay.

 

i dial your number.

A recorded voice

tells me “this number

does not exist…”

Much like that letter

i sent

that came back

unread

frayed and thumbed

but unopened,

a quiet reminder

that, to the

rest of the world,

you are dead.