Second row, third seat, right by the window, Black and white and never sat still, Skinned both her knees on the blacktop in April And laughed about it for a week. Wouldn't wear a dress to anything, Beat every boy in that school at arm wrestling, Called everybody "dude" including the teachers, Nobody ever made her stop. And then it was a Tuesday. And then it was a Wednesday. And then it was a month— Greyscale lotus, Where'd you go? Nobody's saying, nobody knows, Locker's still got her name on the door, Second row, third seat, Nobody sits there anymore. Greyscale lotus, Come back home, Somebody out there knows something, We'll keep the light on, we'll keep asking— Wherever you are, you're not alone. Her mom's car was gone by the weekend, House went quiet, then the sign went up, Everybody's got a different version And every single one of them's worse. Somebody said her dad, somebody said a stranger, Somebody said she wanted to go, Somebody said don't talk about it — So we're talking about it. And nobody's looking. And nobody's asking. And it's been a whole year— Greyscale lotus, Where'd you go? Nobody's saying, nobody knows, Locker's still got her name on the door, Second row, third seat, Nobody sits there anymore. Greyscale lotus, Come back home, Somebody out there knows something, We'll keep the light on, we'll keep asking— Wherever you are, you're not alone. I didn't know her. I want to be honest about that. We had one class and she borrowed a pen and I never got it back. But somebody should say her name out loud somewhere she might hear it. So — Mei. That's all. Just Mei. GREYSCALE LOTUS, WHERE'D YOU GO? Somebody's mother is still waiting by the phone, Locker's still got her name on the door, Second row, third seat— nobody sits there anymore.
