twas

She asked if they could leave the Christmas trees up all year.

He laughed. But took her seriously.

He always did and she knew.

She knew somebody was going to die.

Everybody was talking just fine right now. Sure.

But you know. You just do, don't you?

He said he wasn't going to put up any trees this year, dig them out.

He was working insane hours.

Then one morning there they were and she laughed to find him home.

When she came downstairs he pretended not to notice.

She had turned back from something and he knew.

This is years.

He knew before she knew.

He was like a man chewing gum at a funeral all last year. Before some even.

It's annoying. You want to slap him. Insult him.

Then it's funny. Then it's sexy beyond belief.

He said okay about the trees.

Again sexy.

The sexiest thing on the planet is really someone who listens.

Who kneels to the ground and puts their ear to the railroad track.

He knew his way around a hospital, a kitchen, a cemetery, a bed.

He was one of those rare ones.

He didn't have any contingency plans for death.