New Ones Old

another night spent with another girl

another phase of renewal

treating new girls like the old ones

wishing old ones were more like the new

all the contacts in your phone starting to blur

seated in shadow with a new girl among used furniture

darkness illuminated only by intention

shrieking with our internal mouths

wordless warnings piercing fat silence

daring not to reveal how lonely you really were

ensuring your aloofness remained intact

this wasn’t love or anything silly

love is weakness

love is needy

you refused to need anyone

you vowed never to get hurt

refusing to reveal your pain

just sailing onward together at a distance

ignoring floodlight, sidelight

steering our shared steel ship straight to mist

ropes of union tighten with each movement

no life left in these rafts

***

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Excerpt from UNWASHED published by Mawenzi House Publishers. Copyright © 2024 by Daniel Maluka.