Ten Past Sunset

A soft pluck marks the downbeat stairwells trade their heat

Front steps shed the daylight into stripes

Condensation loosens on the sides

Receipts curl once beside the keys

Thermometer slips down a few degrees

Zipper teeth align along the seam

Air tastes mineral narrow clean

Breath redraws the cadence on the street

Footfalls learn a smaller even beat

Ten past sunset lanes go plain

Billboards mute to linen grain

Ten past sunset clear and lean

City finds a cooler in between

Shopfront letters soften into glass

Traffic hum drops half a class

Curtains tilt to filter gold

Headlamps stitch a silver fold

Cuffs decide to meet the wrist

Phone face dims to amethyst

Steps adopt a steadier design

Voices thin and fall in line

Ten past sunset lanes go plain

Billboards mute to linen grain

Ten past sunset clear and lean

City finds a cooler in between

If a brisk thread turns the corner fast

Take the river loop and let it pass

Mark a tiny marker near the stair

Follow where the paler colors air

Ten past sunset lanes go plain

Billboards mute to linen grain

Ten past sunset clear and lean

City finds a cooler in between

Latch clicks once the hallway settles thin