i)
it looks, at first,
like a place we’ve been before,
that stray silence
where things unravel
and we begin,
shaky breaths and cautious
hands negotiating space,
souls spilling onto the floor,
making the carpet moist.

ii)
we move to the rhythm of
each other delicately,
careful to avoid eye-contact.
we convince ourselves
a glimpse of the unknown
would be the last thing
to save a life. go on
closing your eyes, darling,
walk into bright rooms with
the blindfold on.

iii)
a part of me wants
to believe we are
more than misplaced
names and blurry faces— I
reach out my fingers to touch
your features, still undefined,
you draw back,
an inward breath.

iv)
when you leave
my thoughts slip quietly
onto the streets with you,
all you are is a voice
and a pair of hands.
we are all just voices,
dancing in this world,
alone.

– Ng Yu Ci

Author’s Note: “ab initio” is a poem composed of loss and longing. It was inspired by observations of pedestrians in crowds who move to the rhythm of each other but hardly make eye contact, applied to the fleeting relationships between lovers. At the same time, the poem explores human reservations and intimacy in a relationship, and the eventuality of having to let go.