Among all of these delicate warriors,

a lovely twenty-something girl with a Hello Kitty Bag.

Her damaged smile greets me as our eyes meet,

a determined waif with no more weight to lose.

An elderly man next to me with a tattered baseball cap;  

a soft gleam still in his eyes, but tested by our kindred journey.

Sadly, they are not the only soldiers here with a fight.

I think to myself, with admiration for them,

do others here in this antiseptic place imagine

and hope that one of these comfortable chairs

will be the one to see the last malignancy.