Apothegm

[Underground_Network]

"A cat has nine lives,
I have one,"
Whispers the blind man
To the deaf woman
In the pitch black, soundproofed
Padded room
They've shared
For the past nineteen years.

The deaf woman responds
By putting her hands out in front of her,
Gesturing for the blind man to look
At her dirtied, red palms
And her toothless smile.

The blind man doesn't see
But understands
And takes a bar of soap
From underneath his snug, orange jacket
And places it up against the deaf woman's cheek.

"You will speak one day,
When the cat has lost it's tenth life,
You will speak,
And I,
I will hear you,"
He whispers to her,
Gently rubbing the soap against
Her rough, aged face...

The soap drops to the ground,
As the blind man opens his eyes to see
The walls collapse;
His world collapse.

And then, just then,
In that sudden, venomous moment,
The woman shouts (and the man, he hears!)
"The game is over."