You confide in me –
Tell me what a jerk he is
How he never leaves you alone
How you are tired of him
How he annoys you with
His habits
How you know
He’s cheating
And you think he’s stalking you.

Almost a whisper to my ear
You tell me how he sucks in bed
And that you’ve had better
Or that you wish you did.
You tell me that you take
Measures against his inadequacy
Before or after, or both
And that you need to go shopping
For new toys.

I light a cigarette, clear my tab
And rinse the last of the weak,
Lukewarm coffee down my throat,
I look at you, sigh,
And you complain I
smoke too much.
I say I always smoke after being
Emotionally screwed, so leave me
As I bask in the afterglow…

You buy next time.

Written in the 1990s.