the sun was going down.
we smoked our last cigarettes on the front porch.

b takes the last drags of his and stumbles into the house before me,
i. enter.
a. is cleaning up the game of scattegories.
i can see k. in the dining room, video camera in hand,
l. is signaling i. to be quiet as i. close the door.
everyone is trying hard not to laugh.
across from k. were b.e. and a.r.
a.r. held b.e.'s hand,
while b.e. finished some story about duct tape?
there there was talk about
love at first sight.

k. moved toward l.
g. moved toward a.

b. c. and i said our goodbyes.
they dropped i. off.
then b. came back.

cushioning what could have been a lot worse.
now, about that cigarette...