Last night was a tempest raging within, After ages, we met, you, my faithful sin.
In your warm, flickering embrace, I found solace
Yet, like strangers, we danced, our bond a treacherous balance.
With trembling hands, I reached for your embrace,
Each strike of flame an introspection of disgrace.
The matchstick…unfaithful and a hesitant guide
I met you after ages…Warm soothing flickering you burnt to ashes
As I kindled the flame, you fumed with a fleeting fire
A whisper of blasphemy, an ephemeral desire
“What sins have I committed?” I asked in despair
“Forgetfulness,” you murmured, a chilling affair.
Slowly the smoke twirled like a serpent’s tale
You hissed as I inhaled..like a sacrificial lamb I had surrendered with the first exhale
We were once again predator and prey, Convict and victim in this fleeting fray.
Rapidly the smoke curled, a hesitant wisp, As I drew you close…a forbidden kiss
In your first embrace, a rush of delight, A fleeting moment, in the depths of night.
Witnessing my own demise again I was now not even mine
‘Cultivating Revolution’ that’s what they named you
My white lean kissing machine of Rs 18
As I coughed, you smirked, smiled, and whispered “You’re getting old, dear friend”
Strands of white in your hair, signs of time not working your way
Pain in your neck, a spine losing its flame
No more twists and turns in your rusted joints
No pen in your trembling hands, no adventurous points
Your voice has cracked with hollow memories, Lacking the thrill of past journeys and stories.
I heard you drive in luxury, with your studded car and ventilated seats
Massaging leather cushions and climate control to beat the heat
Remember the last when you hitchhiked?
You once loved to travel, exploring beaches and peaks, Chasing sunsets and adventure, the freedom you’d seek.
Are you even alive my friend… living paycheck to paycheck when did you sell yourself?
I’m the same slender cursed killing machine…cheap tobacco vile rolled paper with menace intentions to kill
A fleeting mirage, I offer solace for a second’s flight
A dragon’s breath, a brief escape into the night…You think you own me, but know my deadly aim
To asphyxiate and choke, to play the fatal game.
I’m honest mutating cells of cancer worth Rs 18
You murdered You long ago
And I heard the rumor
You have accumulated millions murdering, and strangling the nomadic smoker I used to call mine
Yesterday night was a tough one
I met you after ages…Your favorite Marlboro lights
Yet I was engulfed in an empty shallow darkness
Who was the stranger…Tell me
You or I
By: Kshitij Sinha
24/3/2024