I loathe knocking on the door that separates us

Your space and mine, divided – on somewhat neutral ground

I’m convinced there’s some tertiary force that creates this fuss

I hold my breath, tap the door, then turn the knob

To my dismay it swings open

I was hoping somehow it wouldn’t

I don’t even ask, “How are you doing”

The answer would be too much time spent

I have to cross your path to get to my chair

I wish even that wasn’t there

I say “hello” to be polite

You open your mouth

Then your verbal tirade steals all my might

Words spew like a river through a dam

My head spins

Dizzy, I am

I can’t even speak

I sit and listen

The air is so busy

Extraneous words about unrelated things

I force an interruption

But your next thought grows wings

On to another topic

I’m forced to be out of character, this time myopic

I watch the clock on the screen

I feel the time escaping

In between meeting your eyes

I assimilate my exit lines

Except this wasn’t a pleasure, so I can’t say that

I can’t say anything

In the midst of all the blabbering

I look for a lull in the words but it doesn’t come

It’s maddening

At this point in the conversation, I’m numb

I stand and creep toward the door

Not even sure what this meeting was for

“Alright…..” I say as I point my toes away

You’re still talking when I make my escape

You wouldn’t relent

Back in my office a co-worker asks me how it went

I don’t know

Another co-worker says, “The man in Room 4 forgot to ask you something,”

After 10 minutes I make my way back

It’s customer service after all

I feel like Rocky after a brawl

The man is so loquacious

I return to that room where he sits but I just stand in the doorway

I’m fried but do my best to be gracious

He unleashes even more that he has to say

Five minutes go by

I have to use the bathroom and my stomach grumbles, my feet ache

My co-worker peeps in

She says, “There’s an emergency call for you on line 10,”

I assume there’s something more urgent at stake

I excuse myself – what a relief

Back at my office I answer the line with the blinking light

On the other end, silence

My shoulders hunch, hoping everything is alright

And then a soft voice, “What would you like for lunch?”

I sit down in disbelief

My co-worker smiles, her phone to her ear

Our eyes meet

Without a word

The air’s finally clear

A few minutes later, we sit in the quiet, feet up, and eat