One Missed Call

These days I wake up in the middle of the night to check if my phone battery is charged. In all these years, I haven't been able to forgive myself for not calling you back.

Hello, I Don't Know How To Talk

I don't know how to talk.
I don't know how many words to fit into a sentence.
How long to pause in between words.
How long to wait for a response.
I don't know when I shouldn't say anything..
Or when I haven't said enough.
Or how long is okay to talk at a stretch.
I don't know...
I don't know what's the appropriate decibel level.
Or how my tone should be...
When I talk to children, old people, strangers, pets?
I don't know how to talk.
But believe me, I've tried?
I've tried to measure the weight of every word I've ever spoken.
Tried to balance the harsher consonants with softer ones...
And I've been wrong. So wrong, so often.
And I know that there are too many people living in wrong cities,
Over things they did say,
Or things they never did...
Too much blood has been spilt on callous pronunciations.
And I know, that this, isn't a war.
And this shouldn't be a matter of life and death...
And all I have to do is say "Hi".
Cause you're right across the room from me.
And you're smiling. And you're lovely.
But should I say "Hello" though?
Cause then we could use the phrase "You had me at Hello" someday,
As if I'd ever remember this, if the time actually comes.
Am I over thinking this? I haven't even spoken to you yet.
But I don't know how to talk...
So forgive me if I don't know what to say.
But I hope whatever you hear sounds... just okay.
And for now, I'll stick with "Hello".