The Slip

I heard you know about her,

Much more than you knew about me.

How her blue chiffon dress reeked of Davidoff,

And her red lips of Maybellline.

I heard you visited her,

Last night was it?

Your blue striped shirt smelt of it.

And your eyes leaked red.

La nuit la apporte la paix.

The night brings peace...

When was the last time,

I turned around to see you slumber,

I do not remember…

I still baked your apple tarts,

Warm and crisp,

With castor sugar

Sprinkled across them.

It turned cold…

On the teak wooden table,

Of the deserted dining hall,

We had designed together.

I feigned I did not know,

Nor cared, nor bothered,

That you knew her,

More than me.

But tell me,

Will you ever forgive me?

If I had ever slipped…

Slipped...

When you first saw me,

Serving warm earl grey tea,

In a white porcelain cup,

While you sat with your parents with glee.

Slipped…

When the black ink ran out,

From the reynolds ball point pen,

While signing the papers,

At the office of the marriage registrar.

Slipped...

When the ring,

Carefully chosen by you,

Found difficulty in travelling,

Through my ring finger.

It rained heavily last night,

Did you know?

Did you smell the rain?

How could you?

You were busy smelling her blue chiffon dress,

That reeked of Davidoff.

Did I tell you?

I slipped in the rain last night...

La nuit la apporte la paix.

Does it really?

Its human to slip...

But you hated me to be a human

Is it?

3 words long...

You sat next to me,

Close to me,

But exactly 3 millimeters away.

You sat,

I sat,

Our knees 'almost' touched,

Almost 3 millimeters apart.

I counted,

You counted,

Both our heart beats,

It felt like 3*3*3 beats per second.

The cell phone beeped,

For the 3rd time,

In the dark auditorium,

On the 3rd seat from the rear.

The phone displayed,

A message, 3 words long.

You came closer,

By 3 millimeters,

I stayed still,

For 3 seconds.

Then 3 things happened,

Over 3 nights,

But in the 362 nights remaining,

I stared at the stars,

While you stared at the moon.

I wished for 3 similar things,

While you blinked 3 times,

I spoke for 3 seconds,

While you kept silent and typed,

A message 3 words long.

The auto stopped at pincode 330-033,

Where you paid 3 rupees as change,

To run away to your room on the 3rd floor,

Opposite the 3rd coffee shop on Ripon Street.

That Day,

The cell phone beeped for the 3rd time.

The phone displayed

A message, 3 words long.

No it was not the same message,

That I read,

In the dark auditorium,

While staring at the screen,

For 3 hours long.

My tears froze for 3 seconds

And I walked away briskly,

On the 3rd Avenue of the new concrete town.