Weight

I borrowed this to pass the time

and found a secret, not a crime.

A slip of paper, folded small,

hidden where the pages fall.

She owes a sum she cannot pay,

and hides the bills from him each day.

The ink is shaky, hurried, thin,

a quiet way to let him win.

The book smells like a schoolroom floor,

of lemon wax and something more.

Old library paste and dusty shelf,

I keep this burden to myself.