hallway split

One waits in the hallway,

coat already half‑on,

the air too tight

to stand in any longer.

The other moves

through the lounge

with a kind of reckless grace,

turning up the music,

wanting the walls to feel it.

Between them,

the floor holds steady,

bearing both the urge

to step out and the urge

to set the whole place alight,

as if this room were built

for exactly this split.

.