Just The Right Words

You want to find just the right words, not because you have anything to say to her, really, but because you want her to respond in just the right way.

With a raised eyebrow,

Or a breath of laughter.

You'd like to see her tuck her lower lip gently beneath her upper teeth.

You'd like her to reach out with her fingers and clasp your forearm, or caress your ear.

If you find the just the right words, maybe she'll even rest her head against your shoulder and close her eyes.

Her breath will warm your neck, her hair brush your cheek, as you sit side by side on an empty L car late at night, lumbering forward along the tracks into darkness cold and shrouded in fog.