Coffee rings stain the kitchen counter
Grease pops slow on the flat-top grill
She wrote his name in blue ballpoint still
Ink runs thin like cheap wine spilled
Fry cook wipes his hands on denim
Reads the lines the water carved
Every word the rain has starred
Summer heat never looked so hard
Letter rusting behind iron bars
Dusk settles heavy on the fire escape
Words dissolve but the ache won't break
Two strangers share what the storm erases
She packed a bag in ninety-eight
Left the key under the matte black door
He waited tables, washed the floor
Never knew what she was running for
Letter rusting behind iron bars
Dusk settles heavy on the fire escape
Words dissolve but the ache won't break
Two strangers share what the storm erases
Harmonica cries through the screen door
Pedal steel bends like wet cardboard
Upright bass walks the wooden floor
Night shift ends but the letter stays
Regulars know the booth by window
Order eggs and burnt toast daily
Read the news and sip tea slowly
Never ask why the letter stays
Grill goes cold at four a.m.
Cook hangs up his stained white coat
Reads the letter, reads what she wrote
Pocket folds it, walks home alone
Letter rusting behind iron bars
Dusk settles heavy on the fire escape
Words dissolve but the ache won't break
Two strangers share what the storm erases
Summer dusk holds what time replaces
Rain hits iron, paper bleeds
Morning finds what night still keeps
