he sits
down at the counter
elbows rested on the table and his nails dig into his cheek bones
a woman dressed in black, places herself on the stool next to him
they stare into the coffee mugs put under their noses
he sips the last bit
while she has just started
as he sets the check down and stands up to leave
she grabs him by the arm
and begins to cry
"don't leave"
she pleads
and he takes back his seat
puts his lengthy arms around her
says "it will get better"
without even knowing what's wrong
he's not who she wanted
but she takes the repeating words to heart
stares back down into her cup
and sees every memory
of the one she missed