master of tongues breaths

master of tongues      breaths

i came to understand
the meaning of your breath and
the pronunciation and implications
of the dialect of your sighs
an unwritten one
i remember you
taught it to me        one escape
at a time

there was that one     waiting
in the tunnels
you tested me and timed
it well and thought it lost
in the thunder and rush
of the passing train i        noticed
more than the faces of pretty
women within it

this one was               anticipation
this one wished          the tunnels empty
empty so you could stand
closer by a set of inches     less appropriate
          teach me other sounds
by having      me
having them graze the top
of my back     move the locks
on the back of my head instead
of having to hide
the lessons and language
between quickly passing spaces
of subway cars