The Poetry Marathon

7:30 am.
Something must be wrong.
This is so out of character,
Against routine.
She enters the restaurant
And greets the hostess.

“Table for two,” she tells her
“My party should be here soon.”
“Oh,” the hostess remarks
“Do you mean that gentleman?”
She follows her gaze.
Sure enough, there he is.

“Thank you,” she says
And hurries over to the table.
He’s on time for once?
What in the world?
Something had to be wrong,
It was the only explanation

“Ah, you made it!” He stands.
Motioning for her to sit
“You say it as though I am late.”
He laughs.
“Considering I was here first
I would say that you are.”

She lets out a short breath
“On the contrary,” she says
“You are on time
Or else you were early.”
“But you said it yourself
I am always late.”

“Which is why I’m concerned.”
She stares at him.
“Would you like to order something?”
He asks as he waves to a waiter.
“You must try their waffles
They are next to godly.”

She is losing her patience.
“No, I do not want waffles.
I don’t want food, I don’t want a drink.
Stop beating around the bush.”
She folds her arms
Awaiting his explanation

“Hold the waffles,” he tells the waiter,
Then looks at her, all business.
“It is time for our regular meeting.
I presume you have something for me?
Or perhaps you have nothing at all.
That would be a refreshing change.”

“Our meetings are always at 10:00 sharp.
We meet at the same place every time.
I always wait for you
and when you show up you always get
that ridiculous coffee.
Now, what is going on?”

“I decided to change things up a bit.
Don’t you like it?”
“Change it up?
I am not convinced.”
“My dear, I am a god.
I can and will do as I please.”

They stare each other down.
He isn’t going to give in.
But she can see it in his eyes.
There is a reason for this change
“Fine,” she said, resigned.
He smiles and gives a nod

“Now, what do you have for me?”
She removes the files from her bag
The stack seems larger than last time
“Quite a ‘haul’ this time around.
I’m sure you will be pleased.”
He scowls.

“Is there a problem?” he asks
“Do you have something you would like to say?”
She considers the possibility
And thinks better of it
“Not at all.
Just making an observation.”

He puts his chin in his hands
Resting elbows on the table
“You don’t like me. You despise me.
In fact, I daresay you actually hate me.”
“Isn’t that what mortals do?” she retorts.
“We hate the gods and the feeling is mutual.”

“We do not hate mortals.
Not all of us at least.
And I am highly offended
You would so easily assume that.”
“I don’t care about offending you, sir.
And my assumption is based on fact.”

“Yes, because history always tells the truth.
Your history books say the gods are a myth
Yet somehow you have found yourself
Employed by one.”
“Not my best job choice, I will admit
But it does–somehow–pay the bills.”

He straightens.
“I am not the evil monster you make me out to be.”
Once again he leaves without explanation,
Ever a mystery to be solved.
Sometimes it really pisses her off.
But today, it’s different

She can’t help wondering
What has gotten into him lately?
What is this sudden escalation
Of caring and sentimentality?
She continues to sit alone,
Pondering it all.

I really couldn’t say
What happened to me
Where this person I’ve become
Spawned from
But I know something’s not right
Most days I get by
I can smile and laugh
Convince them it’s alright
When deep down inside me
I’m struggling just to breathe

I’m a mess, but I’ll try
To keep my chin up
And hide it all from you
Because I know how much
It hurt you to see me that way
So I’ll put on an act
I’ll keep smiling
So you feel at ease
It wasn’t always this way
The truth is
I used to be fine

I wish I could just be me
Wish I could just scream it all out
Tell you how much it kills me
To see you behaving this way
And yet I’m expected to be okay
It isn’t fair

It’s a mess, but I’ll try
To keep my thoughts to myself
And pretend nothing you say
Really troubles me
It hurts to see you this way
But I’ll put on a brave face
I’ll keep smiling
So you feel at ease
It wasn’t always this way
The truth is
We used to be fine

I’m dreaming of you
Your smile, laugh, everything
Do you dream of me?

She makes me smile easily
I love the sound of her laugh
She loves unconditionally
She has a tender heart
She is not average
She is a superhero
Saving my life every day
With her kindness and love
She is not like us
She far surpasses our ability
To exist, to love, to see the world
For all the beauty that it holds
My life would be empty without her

Lightning crashes
Storm rages
Flash
The mechanism
In the garden
Bizarre
Temptation presses
Curiosity wins
Explosion

She sits at the table sipping her coffee,
Periodically checking the time.
Impatiently she taps her foot.
Her drink nearly finished now.

Just before the final sip he arrives,
Black suit and tie neatly pressed.
He spots her and waves.
She scowls.

“You look lovely as ever,” he says,
Pulling out a chair.
“Spare me your flattery,” she retorts.
“You’re late, as usual.”

The waitress walks over.
“What can I get you sir?”
“Coffee, no sugar or cream
Just a spoonful or two of cinnamon.”

She glances at him.
“Cinnamon?” she asks.
“Yes, a whole spoonful or two.”
She nods, then walks away.

“If it is usual for me to be late, my dear,
Why bother expecting anything more of me?”
“I honestly couldn’t say.
You are a god after all.”

He is clearly offended,
though he keeps it to himself.
He smiles pleasantly.
“So, what do you have for me?”

She reaches for her bag and
Pulls out several folders.
“These ones,” she begins
“Will be seeing you within the week.”

He takes the stack and begins flipping through.
“Within the week? You are awfully confident.”
“I’ve bee doing this long enough
to know when the end is near.”

A few folders in he pauses.
The file is of a young child.
She watches his face fall.
“You’re sure this time?”

She nods.
“Nothing more to be done.”
He closes the folder
And places it in his bag with the rest.

“Not going to look at them all?”
She eyes him suspiciously.
“Like you said,” he replies, standing,
“You’ve been doing this a long time.”

“Do I detect sentiment?
I thought you gods were ‘above’ us mortals.”
Time seemed to stop
As the god turned to face her.

“My dear,” he remarked,
His voice full of something dark.
“When you’ve been doing this as long as I have
sentiment is an unfortunate result.”

The waitress returns.
“Your coffee sir,” she says
“Thank you,” he replies smiling
Then proceeds to empty the cup

“Until next time.”
He says to his companion.
He tosses the empty cup
And leaves without another word.

She sits alone for a moment,
Finishes her last sip of coffee,
Leaves a tip for the waitress,
Then carries on with her day.

Inspired by Kaichou Wa Maid-Sama!

I’m right in front of you
I know that you know
Yet somehow I’m still fighting
To be seen

I love you, I’ve told you so
Yet still you find it hard to believe
I’m just an annoyance, a burden
Something for you to easily toss aside

But I won’t leave you
No matter the cost
I don’t care if you hate me
I don’t care if you reject me

I love you, Misa.

They say it isn’t proper
That as queen I should set my sights higher.
But how can I deny the the things
I feel when I see you?

You aren’t royalty.
You’re far from nobility.
Most would say you fall last
In the line of importance.

But they don’t see what I see,
Or know you like I do.
They don’t see how you brighten my day
With your sweet, simple smile.

You’re more than the fool,
You’re more than a joke.
You’re all I could ask for.
You’re the one that I love.

They say it isn’t proper;
I should set my sights higher.
But I cannot deny you,
My fool, my love.

I joined the hunt.
I traversed time and space.
I solved crimes
and I avenged the earth.
I dreamed a dream.
I saw history made on ice.
I searched for lost memories
and joined a wizard’s guild.
I saw citizens fail their city.
I have been in the depths of despair.
I saw a boy who lived
and a world inside of a suitcase.
I wished upon a star.
I saw the fastest man alive.
I traveled between universes
and ventured into the dragon’s keep.
I joined the rebellion.
I gazed upon the final frontier.
I participated in the Games
and stood with the Divergents.
I searched for abnormals.
I vanquished demons.
I saw a world barely touched by human hands.
I mingled with children of the gods
and saw the Once and Future King fall.
I felt the pain of loss.
I felt the joy of reunion.
I felt the relief of truth
and the anger of lies.
I have lived a thousand lives
and not regretted one.
I have seen wonders and possibilities
in a world too often bleak.

By the light of the moon,
On a cool, cool night,
Young Johnny Locke took a walk
Down to the old lake.

He’d not far to go
When his eyes caught a flash.
A glimpse of a maiden’s face,
Her hair flowing down her back.

He paused his late night venture
And puzzled, “Have my eyes deceived me?
“What maiden would brave the forest
At a time such as this?”

Young Johnny shook his head.
Surely he’d imagined it.
He continued on, in no mood
To worry about such things.

He soon came to the water’s edge
And set himself on the sand.
No particular reason to be there,
Just enjoying the calm of the night.

T’was then that he saw that maiden once more,
Walking not far from where he sat.
He rose to his feet quickly, startled,
And watched as she came to a stop.

She stared up at the moon, the gentle breeze
Wrapping her locks about her face.
She stood like a goddess, her beauty unbridled,
Her presence beyond mortal reach.

A rustle nearby and Young Johnny turned
As one by one more fair maidens appeared.
They too like goddesses walked
Down to she at the water’s edge.

He tucked himself behind a tree,
Away from the light of the moon.
He looked on as the goddesses
Formed a wide circle.

Their bodies began to sway
To what tune, he could not tell.
Young Johnny Locke from his hiding place watched
As the maidens began to dance.

They raised their arms to the heavens
Then slowly brought them to hang at their sides.
They took a step towards their center,
Their eyes watching the skies.

They continued to move with such grace, such beauty,
That Young Johnny couldn’t tear his eyes away.
It was entrancing, their movements across the sand,
And he could feel the world around him slipping away.

A sudden jolt as the ground rose to meet him.
Had he somehow fallen asleep?
He looked around, trying to get his bearings,
And was surprised to find the sun slowly rising.

He turned back to the lake.
Were they still there?
But much to his dismay
The shoreline held no occupants.

Young Johnny Locke found his way home
All the way puzzling how it could have been so.
How could he have missed them? When had they left?
He tried to recall the last thing that he saw.

Maidens dancing on the shore,
Was that really all he could remember?
There had to be something.
There had to be more.

Home at last he was surprised to find
The villagers, his neighbors, all gathered ’round.
Upon seeing him his mother cried out.
She dropped the spoon in her hand and ran to embrace him.

She scolded him for sneaking out
For putting her into such a fit.
He tried to explain, to tell her what happened,
Of the lake and it’s dancing maidens.

No one would listen,
They thought him to be ill.
He tried and he tried
But it was just no good.

As the excitement died down
And the villagers returned to their homes,
An elderly gentleman approached him,
And asked, “You’ve seen them, too?”