A pregnant, purple sky waits while
glowing automata dance like fireflies
with the loitering darkness.
A lone star still hangs above the fog,
we hold our breath–
soon sidewalk sleepers will be
expelled from their doorways
and cardboard cushions.
As you lift your modest veil,
we rub sleep from our eyes
and thoughts of rush hour, skyscrapers,
excel spreadsheets saturate our minds.
We lose the virginity of the city’s early morning
and buses inevitably bustle by
taking our dreams to concrete
as we rustle up our monthly tuition
for your twilight university.
