cigarette smoke hung heavy in the air
slow and steady like time was waiting
for him to catch up

with weathered leather jacket and rough unshaven jaw
bright eyes that couldn't have been more
distant than ever
he's been gone since

bitter resentment
blind nostalgia for the old gal he used to have
she didn't know
commitments and conferences kept her away
her future secured with a pinch of surety
like a caterpillar in a  cocoon
ready to bat its wings away
while he had his walking around aimlessly
struggling to find permanence in anything

convinced himself that he was free and footloose
but satisfaction all short-lived
mostly found late at night in rundown motels and crowded bars

it's hard to keep your eyes open
when missed opportunities close in on you
he's drowning in a sea of disappointment
or was it the liquor?

everyone calls him No-Hope and he thinks so too
but still he wouldn't let go
and be carried away in the current
like the rest of the faceless, countless No-Hopes like him

dream of reason
slow lullaby worries
every lie is still raw,
but the kind of way
the blood will boil
spurring heated cheeks and frantic *******
the sucker punch of arousal intensifies
anchored by her
made out? [laughs]
kiss each other, hug

tongue each other and
it looks good on ****
but nothing prepares you for the real thing
the shakiness
when crazy, fun and naked
is just waiting to happen

and mixing it with soul,
"with you"
a view of the world that cannot be found anywhere else
inches closer and
by nailing each other
"by looping a silk scarf around my neck"
there was more intense connection to

the body

like stepping into a magical world

bigger than life

grounding the highs and lows of your senses
constantly engaged.
make love that stays
taste the details in their own skin
the whole room shaking So We Can Remember
"you come first"

"i know a lot of people will say, 'well
some of the most memorable moments of your life will happen
with people you don't know in places you have never been.'
'someone who's happy gives the best pleasure'"
and i know
to 'Know Better'
(and live without. . .
acid tongue and biting bliss)
will scale new heights
But nothing would be incredible