Talking to a Spider in the Bath

There you are in the corner of my eye
scurrying sideways

a black atom, a stain against enamel
a venomous intruder

or is that me, stepping into the
shower’s caul of steam?

I notice how careful we are
of each other

a kind of good neighbourliness
that is not love

mutual hostility or even respect
but just our way of

never touching the nerve wires
taut between us.