The Last Conversation
by Veronica Tucker
I didn’t know it would be the last time
I’d hear you laugh like that, a soft crack
in your voice, like the fading light of dusk.
We spoke in circles, the words tangled
between what I should’ve said and what I did,
as if we both knew time was running out
but never had the courage to say it.
You said “goodnight” like you always did,
but something in the air, heavy with unspoken things,
told me I was already losing you.
I left with the weight of silence,
holding on to the way your smile seemed
to stretch just a little longer than usual,
a final attempt to say everything we never could.
Afterward, the rooms felt emptier,
your absence settling into the corners.
I reached for the phone, fingers faltering
too afraid to hear the finality in your voice.
The days stretched on, hollowed by the echoes
of everything we never said.
I’d hear you laugh like that, a soft crack
in your voice, like the fading light of dusk.
We spoke in circles, the words tangled
between what I should’ve said and what I did,
as if we both knew time was running out
but never had the courage to say it.
You said “goodnight” like you always did,
but something in the air, heavy with unspoken things,
told me I was already losing you.
I left with the weight of silence,
holding on to the way your smile seemed
to stretch just a little longer than usual,
a final attempt to say everything we never could.
Afterward, the rooms felt emptier,
your absence settling into the corners.
I reached for the phone, fingers faltering
too afraid to hear the finality in your voice.
The days stretched on, hollowed by the echoes
of everything we never said.
Veronica Tucker is an emergency medicine and addiction medicine physician and a writer whose work explores themes of memory, grief, and human resilience. Her poetry has been featured in ONE ART, Medmic, and Red Eft Review, with additional works forthcoming. Tucker's writing draws from her background in medicine and motherhood, often blending personal experience with broader reflections on the human condition. You can find her writing at veronicatuckerwrites.com and on Instagram at @veronicatuckerwrites.