My sister laid awake
Waiting for me to come to bed
So she could ask me to real quick grab her a tissue, please
To put her gum in
To throw away.

Imagine if I’d never come to bed.

She’d have laid awake forever
Too tired to get that tissue herself
But eyes pried open by that stupid gum in her mouth
Getting stiffer, harder, colder
More and more like a pink wad of nothing rattling around
Visible only through that gap
Between her white front teeth

That gap is sure to close.
What kind of a life would that be?

Imagine if I’d never come to bed.