They talked for hours,
linked electronically
overcoming the miles between them
speaking casually, as if down the hall
Reluctantly goodbyes were exchanged, then
the screen went blank
leaving only
the muted kitchen lights,
drips from an unrepaired faucet and
muffled voices from his neighbor's television:
The imaginary conversations of fictional friends
Alive, but only in the sense that the actors on the screen were once
alive
somewhere