Next morning
on the phone to her—
the all of it
reduced to words—
How lovely the way
we redefined wrong.
Yes, she agreed,
then slowly, in a hush,
It went beyond
pleasure, beyond fun.
They laughed
without gaiety.
I feel numb, he said,
and hung up to begin
what he’d later describe
as a long slide into himself.
Conversation with others
seemed like chatter.
Work felt like work.
He’d call her up
and say things like Holy shit,
which she understood
to be accurate.