MEETING NIMA IN 1967

A BOY AND GIRL MEET IN TRAFALGAR SQUARE IN 1967.

I don't know
where I’m going
Nima said
downward spiral

she was sitting
by a fountain
in Trafalgar Square

I was there too
watching the water flowing

are you getting through
the drug withdrawal?

not easy
she said
and being stuck
at the hospital
gets me down too
she said
being let out
only if I’m a good girl
if the quack thinks
I’m doing
as I’m told

have your parents
been in touch much?

minimal
they're doctors anyway
so they know the score
but I don't see them much
she said

want a smoke​​?
I asked

sure if you've got one
she said

so I got out a packet
of cigarettes
and she took one
and I lit both cigarettes
and we sat there smoking
and silent for a while

then she said
do you know
what I miss most?

no what
I said

well apart
from the drugs itself
I miss contact
with real humans
someone not involved
with the hospital
or other patients or such

and she laughed
I miss you
when you're not around
that time we had
that quickie
in that small cupboard
in the corridor
of the hospital
amongst brooms
and such
o man that was good
and well so weird

I laughed too
it had been weird
and I wondered
if any of the nurses
knew afterwards
or maybe it was
just us
only we knew
about the quickie
in the cupboard

I inhaled deeply
and sensed
her perfume nearby
and the outfit
she was wearing
that day
caught my eye.