Four hours earlier
Dan frantically unpacks
The contents of his green backpack-
A life scattered
Over grey, concrete pavement
"I know I packed them!"
He said
Finally, a triumphant fist
Thrusts two tickets into the air
The maître-d is less impressed
But with a clap
Phil celebrates their small victory
Two hours earlier
The dinner plates are whisked away
By curiously white, cotton hands
"Dessert?"
It's only New Year's Eve
Once a year
"Why not!"
Two forks, one bowl
They share a slice of decadent chocolate cake
And everything else, too
With fingers interlocked
In a fierce promise
Beneath the once-pristine white tablecloth
Just out of sight
Twenty minutes earlier
The sky is untempered
Black clouds had briefly threatened earlier
Not that they'd have cared
The stunning view and prime position
Designed primarily for a person
Who cannot gaze with love
"I can't wait for next year"
"Me neither"
Together
(of course)
The promise of tomorrow holds
Endless possibility
Five minutes earlier
They find a spot by the window
And Phil gets two glasses
Of the finest champagne they can't afford
Glass meets glass with a clear ring
There must be at least three hundred people
In their close vicinity
But they would have no idea
There's only one person who matters tonight
Just the one
And in the clamour of countdowns
And half-drunken kisses
And the sound of stilettos
And all eyes on the sky
They might just be falling in love
All over again
One hour later
The lush pillows serve a soft embrace
As they tumble down to horizontal
Finally
Their hands find each other once more
Exhausted, sated grins say more
Than almost any words
Rolling up against him
Lips still tingling slightly somehow
From midnight
Bruised with free affection
Find the strength to split apart
And murmur into the dark-
I love you
I love you
I love you