The vent shuts down and the ceiling feels tall I wait for the rush to come back through the wall The lamp by the couch makes a pool on the floor I know I did harm; I can't edit it anymore No speech in my head, no defense to prepare Just the soft little sounds of the building at rest I keep my mouth closed, let the moment stay bare For once I can sit without filling the air Room tone, nothing here is healed The weight of what happened is still real Room tone, no verdict in the sound Just enough quiet to stay where I am I don't have to solve what comes after this I can let one empty minute exist And take one slow breath in the room tone The pipes give a knock, then the hallway goes still No cue ever comes telling me what to feel I reach for a reason, then let the thought sit It doesn't disappear when I stop chasing it What happened is waiting beyond this room It won't become less because silence came through But I can meet morning without a defense If I leave this space open and stay present tense Room tone, nothing here is healed The weight of what happened is still real Room tone, no verdict in the sound Just enough quiet to stand where I am I don't have to solve what comes after this I can let one empty minute exist And take one slow breath in the room tone I thought if the noise quit, I'd disappear too But I am still here with the work left to do Not ready to speak, not asking release I can stay in the gap without calling it peace Room tone, nothing here is healed The weight of what happened is still real Room tone, no verdict in the sound Now there is space to choose where I stand I don't need an answer before I can move I can wait till my words are honest and true For now, one slow breath in the room tone
