Evidence of

by Berry

a man in the elevator at work this morning asks me if i am new
i've worked in the office right next to his for 8 years
and i tell him so
he says, really?

really
i spend most of the rest of the day in a daze
checking for permanent markers like beauty spots
and household bills

grab my cell phone and run
to the nearest live webcam
in the public courtyard outside the building
ring my mother and breathless desperate shout:

can you see me?

can you see me?

i wave and wave and wave.

no one looks
i can't tell if she's there

yes , she says, calm, as if the whole world hadn't almost negated me beyond repair.

yes.