stay

it's not even midnight

i walked down empty streets

i couldn't even pretend you may be there

in a crowded place

there was no crowed

there was no place

but a closing pub

with patrons that stay too long

i pass empty buildings

a facade hiding fallen walls

i don't even have to wait for the light to cross

one stranger passes

asks for direction to a place i don't know

i am a stranger in my own town

i walk through the empty promenade at the hotel 

the arcade is lit and full with the sounds of machines

but standing in the doorway, i pause

it is a liminal space

void of life

void of exit

with a robotic fortune teller greeting visitors

from his glass container

with knowing stare

judging 

as i walk away

i begin to feel out of place

out of time

wondering why i stay here

but remembering

this feeling is not new

i eventually find it everywhere

once the anticipation of discovery wears off

and the streets become familiar reminders

that this is not home.