Saturday, Kings Cross, half-lit glow Goldfish Bowl said stay, I said no Stool, one beer, kill some time Mirror caught you in your prime Denim jacket, crooked grin Like we’d already been let in You tipped your chin, closed the space Like I’d just been running late “Alone or playing hard to read?” “Give it time,” I said, “we’ll see” You laughed low, already sold “Come with us before it’s old” We ran through noise like it was ours Streetlight halos, neon bars You touched like it was understood Like being seen was something good I lost my edge, I lost control That night began at the Goldfish Bowl Albury blur, cheap shots, dares Snide remarks and stolen stares You leaned in close, voice dropped slow Said things I won’t let go Bar line chaos, someone yelled “Cutting in?” — I never dwelled “Wouldn’t dream,” and laughter broke Whole room riding on the joke You weren’t loud in the usual way But you never looked away Somewhere in the things I hid You made it feel like I just… lived We danced in places we once feared Turned quiet doubts into something clear Every touch rewrote the rules Every glance cut clean through I let it pull, I let it roll From a barstool start at the Goldfish Bowl Paddington flat, stale air, light Takeout ghosts and tangled nights Books half-read, your jumper mine Never asked, just left it behind Thai place knew you, no menus there Sundays sunk in plastic chairs Bad TV and coffee grains Your feet resting like you’d stay You spoke in fragments, never whole Half-brother, rigs, a bet you lost Tattoo faded, stories thin Jokes instead of letting me in I didn’t push, I liked the blur Felt like something I could learn You made space without a claim Didn’t need to name the thing We were louder than words allow Building something in the now Every look a quiet defiance Every touch a small alliance I leaned too hard, I let it hold All I had from the Goldfish Bowl Toothbrush, shirt, then bits of me Left like clues I couldn’t see Plans for later, fishing lines Pie shop dreams and borrowed time You’d go missing, nights or two “Had to deal” — that was you I stayed quiet, played it smart Like questions tear things apart Felt it coming, didn’t speak That old fear beneath the peak Nothing good gets kept for long Not for someone wired this wrong We were burning in borrowed light Every moment felt like right Thought this time I’d learned the role Thought I’d finally grown a soul But things like this don’t ask, they go Fade to black from the Goldfish Bowl No last call, no final scene Just empty space where you had been Still see your grin some nights, I swear In every mirror, you’re still there
