Could cut the tension
With a blade
I never understood
The saying
Obvious
We aren’t friends
But on false pretense
Still depends
A sort of multi-facet,
Tacit
Truce
To minimize
Verbal abuse
And loosen lips
In shared critique
Just bite your tongue
Before you speak
With liberties
You haven’t earned,
Preserved,
Secured,
Or not yet learned
For we have both
Returned from far
Abroad
From peace and war
And yet have more
Left to endure
Than how we still
Settle the score