morning rush hour

with a lurch the train
shudders from the station
moving slowly at first
and then gaining speed
picks up the pace as trees
blur past the window to greet
my faded reflection.
directly across from me

a girl bites her lower lip
our knees bare inches away
from any chance at intimacy
and as she adjusts her i-phone
with white wireless earbuds
poking just beneath a woolen cap
the faintest notes from some dance mix
echoes in the space between us.

her head slowly bobs with each beat
as the miles click metallically past
and i can’t help but smile
at this distance awkwardly close
yet ages apart isolated
as we are on different paths
which will never pass
so near again.