The Boy in the Taxi

4am

Leaning on a lamppost

Sobering up

Waiting for the Night Bus

tired

The blur of street lights

Neon shop lights

Car lights

Bus lights

Taxi lights

Pub lights

Bar lights

Club lights

Fade

Yet focus

my increasing sobriety

Allows me to notice

the decreasing glare

Or frequency of movement

a city no longer abuzz

Sleeps

It dawns on me no more buses will come

Stranded

The warmth and welcome of my bed a pipedream

I turn for a look in vain at the timetable

lumbering dozily to the shadows of the bus shelter

I spy

For the first time

A girl

And smile

As friendly

And asexual as possible

in attempt to make clear my non-threatening presence

short of saying “Don’t worry, I’m not a rapist”

Which

I’d imagine

would do nought to allay her concerns

I hesitate

To make

conversation

of our obvious predicament

Not wanting to add to her troubles

giving her some creep to contend with

 “I think we might have missed them all”

I offer

“hmm”

She replies, understandably

“where you heading?”

I venture

Same place as me it turns out

“You reckon we should get a taxi?”

I suggest, practically

By now I’ve noticed how pretty her face is

“I might just wait a bit longer”

She answers

voice as light as a feather

An engine is heard

A taxi appears

“I think I’m gona get this,” I say

“you’re welcome to join me”

She looks to the corner

No bus

A glance at the timetable

uncertain

Again to the corner

No bus

The taxi approaches

“I’ve got no money”

And passes

“neither have I”

Side by side

At the holes in the wall

we chat about this

and laugh about that

like long-time friends

before

I’m even aware

we’re in a taxi, halfway home

we talk of books we’ve read

and those we haven’t but intend to

and lie about the intention of reading ones we haven’t

but the other has

she enthuses of exhibitions she plans to see

and plays she’ll go to

while I take great pleasure in having already been

and telling her so

allowing myself an air of the cultured

Not wanting to leer through the darkness of the taxi

I’ve kept eyes front

Or out on the street

Up to now

though perpetual laughter

Forces a glance

to find

with each streak of streetlight

scanning her face

she’s looking right at me

smiling

eyes bright

teeth white

engaged

We arrive where we like

Split the fare and alight

“Right, I’m that way”

She points in the direction I’m not

The taxi pulls away and leaves us

alone

The only two awake in the world

We face each other

Walking backwards

“ok, well, I’ll see you later”

Should I hug her?

“yeh, thanks for getting me home”

I’ve remained gentlemanly up to now

And have no intention of sullying it

“no worries. See you in a bit”

“see yer”

We slowly turn round

Kind of waving

Both smiling

Seeking any excuse to talk

“get home safe”

“you too”

We laugh again

Backs to each other

We walk away

Further down the road

A movie-style climactic scene

Springs to mind

I should run back

get her number

we might kiss

fall in love

from a chance meeting

fate

surely

has set this up for us

sinful

to show

such blasé ignorance

of blatant transcendent gift-wrapped romance

I don’t

I choose instead to appreciate

The perfect nature of the encounter

For what it was

How we laughed

For one taxi ride

Her opinion of me untarnished

Forever

The boy in the taxi

Who liked stuff she liked

A faultless performance

Never touched each other

Never got close

Never grew complicated

Never fell out

Never hated each other

Never broke up

Who knows

Maybe I’ll bump into her

Around and about

One day

And we’ll carry on

Maybe

But maybe that’d ruin it