And Here I Was Background Noise Poem by Patrick O'Reilly

I survived as background noise
In the circle outside the cinema.
Mass crowds of chaos.

Everyone was shouting,
Everything spinning,
All hazy with the promise of kicks,
The excitement and adrenaline of the slasher flick.

Some were waiting,
Some were heading out to smoke pot,
And in the middle of this riot
I couldn't get you off my mind.

The black plague of not bringing you out.
Consequence behind a smile.

I skulked away from these friends
To search for people-watching and paper
And read the monkey books of my youth
And to think about you home alone,
Beautiful and brown-eyed.