Noureen K. Ajmal
“The coldest rain is always the first” Monday grumbles as the 5 people with nothing but files inside and nothing but the satchels and raincoats to suggest these people were walking to the subway station or some new office across street.
They walk still further up to a candy shop and buy 2 licorice strips; and head to the old building, still not talking, a surprise turn leads to a dark alley.
A man snatches the licorice that sucks blue; still 5 walk as though not noticing, the man sneaks the one that sucks pink the last one and skulks away, as if on cue the 5 turn and walk back to the old building, there they stay until Tuesday whispers “the first rain puddles are most slippery” then they slip out wearing black dresses as if to a funeral, yet again going to candy crazy candy shop, this time buying one packet of taffy, as the last one in line, a young man slits open the packet, as he walks, happy children scoop the taffy up and twist their wrappers, then they go back inside their old building.
Wednesday scattered fog early the next morning and stood to watch it curl then slowly chuckled “the fog after the first rain is always the hardest to see in” then disappeared. Yet again the 5 people dressed in black walk to the candy shop, the girl in the middle with white flowers in her hair tosses mints out to nobody in particular, and as they leave the outside fills up with mist and disappears.
Thursday drops soft mellow rain, then closes its action without any words. This is the second rain not so hard and not so loud, 5 people (the ones we know) walk out of the tattered building and walk in their mysterious sorrow that they always walk in, through the candy shop route and into the subway, where 4 sit together and 1 apart, 3 of the 5 get down on West Weed Street and 2 on Black Kat Lane, no one’s lips have words for each other, they are still as quiet as how we first saw them, each with smiles, the two on Black Kat Lane separate and one goes into a house with a cat that purrs, and the second to fresh smelling office, sits down and checks files.
2 West Weed high schoolers are back, white flower girl and her brother are both stuffing mysterious coats into their bags as they walk up to the gate
Postman Larry was out of town for Thank-your-postman-day (and Monday and Wednesday too), he arrives in a black coat then changes to uniforms, the rumor is he’s getting married.
Now let’s let a year pass, and Postman Larry is going to see his wife, 2 high schoolers are missing for a test, a cat is going to be lonely and files unchecked.