Someone, Something, Somewhere, Somewhere Poem by Kewayne Wadley

Someone told me you died
It took a while to process this information
I laughed it off as a bad joke
Having just saw you
People die everyday but not so young
Bar side
laughing
Crumbled paper wrapped in plastic
People die everyday but not so young
Not you, Not now
You had a pretty common name
The rest of the day took a turn for the worse
Those words began to sink in, unexpectedly.
I tried to laugh again
Thinking about the night before
The ashes that overfilled the ashtray
The drinks consumed bar side.
Although close you seemed distant
You would have been thirty one
Staring off at the bottles behind the bar
That was the first time you uttered the words I love you
We exchanged looks
Mouth filled with smoke
I listened but did not hear
I took those words for granted
Not wanting to believe that it would be the last time I saw you
Somewhere deep down I knew that if I called
You wouldn't answer
Somewhere deep down I knew you weren't that busy to pick up
The phone
That heavy hand on my shoulder was you all along