he held the chair for her

she sat in the chair next to it

she held the door open for him

he pulled his hand back into his sleeve to receive her kindness with caution

he dropped his intention

she chose to pretend she hadn’t noticed

they reached out to give comfort to pain observed in the other

and were succinctly rejected

and so it went on

kindness thwarted

comfort dissuaded

touch withheld

a singularity more acute than known before

nurture verses nature

and winning