(Based on the painting Nighthawks by Edward Hopper)

This tiny diner
Lights up like a firefly
Against the midnight sky;
A dark, desolate city.

Inside sits a couple.
She'd chosen a red dress
And carefully lined her lips
With an even deeper shade of scarlet.
He's sporting a grey hat,
Even though it's indoors,
And a navy suit.

The aroma of coffee is slight
Mixed with the early jazz tunes
Humming from the radio.
But neither can rival
The taste of memories
Floating hazily around.

Sitting on the creaking stools
Across the room from the duo
Another man sips his coffee
Contemplating the woman.

He used to have a gal like that
The type that would light up the room
Red curls, ruby lips.
But no, she preferred a baby blue dress.
He would have small flashes
Of her vibrant singing, dancing,
And of course, the leaving.
For him those throbbing flashes
Would wind their way around him,
Squirming into his ears and
Prodding at past memories that
He had struggled so hard to subdue.

The woman across from him perches on her seat
Her hand lingering next to her husband's,
Staring into the depths of her cigarette,
She pretends that the hazy smoke
Could fill the gaps in her heart.
She knows the cherry of her lips
Won't stand a chance
Against the rim of the warm coffee cup,
She winces as the bitter, scalding liquid
Cascades down her throat.
She can't find it in herself to care,
The guilt is overwhelming.
She wants to confess her cheating
Beg him to stay, to call her "baby"
Or "honey," it wouldn't matter
That she despises those names.
Deeper down, she knows
She'll leave the other man,
Try to convince him and herself
That she loves her husband.
She imagined the scene,
Set in a movie,
When she loved him --
Her husband taking her back.
But her pretend theater set
Crumpled into matches

That began to flame --
Until tears fell from

the corners of her eyes.

Her husband stares at her cigarette.
He wants to grab her hand,
Though he won't.
He gazes at her eyes.
He notices an emptiness.
He has heard that the eyes are the
Gateway to the soul, so what
Could her deserted eyes possibly mean?