look but don't touch

We stand
looking at each other
In another time and space
We'd be in each other's arms
Lover's embrace
Cheek to Cheek
1940s Hollywood style
You'd whisper
"darling"
I'd whisper
"dearest I'm yours"
and the screen would go black
and everyone would know what happened
and no one would dare speak it aloud.

It's not 1940
and we remain
standing
with decades of unspoken sweet nothings
splashing in drops on the cold pavement between us
In a moment
we might touch
and that moment
would change everything

and so we remain
standing.