perfect strangers

I wait nervously at the edge, watching carefully at the people around me.
I don’t know them
But I know of them,
The lights are dim and the air is so thick.

Slowly I move into the circle of people
Making sure no one sees my real face: The one of fear and distress.

They see confidence and fun,
The clothes suggest so many things
But my skin crawls at the attention.

Suddenly out of the dimness I feel him there.
He’s close but still far away for me to wonder
What he’s like.
Slowly we get closer but I still don’t know him.

We’re so far off from everything,
The only emotion I feel is warmth between us
And I get lost in it.

He’s my stranger.
I don’t want to know him,
If that happens then he’ll know me;
My mask will shatter and I’ll fall so deep.

A surge of people envelope us,
But it’s still the two of us.
Soon, I’m part of the group and we’re all together,
The air is so thick, it’s stifling.

We don’t stop though.
It’s now a rhythm that doesn’t stop…
It can’t stop.

After an eternity we stop,
We laugh and grin madly at ourselves.
He’s smiling.
And so am I.

We’re perfect strangers.