The room stops laughing before his smile arrives For half a second, it hangs where the light was He wears the right expression, just a moment late Nods when the words have already changed their shape A question reaches him; his lips begin to move He holds the answer till the room has changed its mood No one turns around, no one calls it strange The chairs scrape back while he is still in place The pauses keep on stretching past their part He pulls each second after where they are The beat moves on before his feet can land And every small delay takes all he has He moves, but the room moves on His outline follows after he's gone Still in the light, still doing his best Like a shadow out of step Close enough that no one checks One breath behind what happens next HE WAS THERE — JUST A SECOND TOO LATE! The keys are warm and waiting in his hand He stops outside the door he meant to pass The porch light lays his shape across the wall His body knows the house, but still he waits One step, held breath, thumb pressed to the key Door right there, but the timing won't agree Turns down the block, comes back around slow Parks at the curb with nowhere else to go Maybe he is tired Maybe it has been a day Maybe every easy answer Is an easier way to look away He stands before the next small move And spends his strength on staying in the room HOW LONG CAN ONE SECOND HOLD HIM BACK? HOW LOUD DOES A SILENT DELAY HAVE TO GET? He moves, but the room moves on His outline follows after he's gone Still in the light, with no room left to rest Like a shadow out of step Close enough that no one checks One breath behind what happens next He is still here — don't miss him yet A shadow out of step The shadow misses one more step One more step Just after him
