there would still be flowers, maybe not as many.
After all, would the people still be afraid?
Where would all that anger and all that pain go?
It couldn’t possibly fit wherever they would bury her
perfect Barbie body. The funeral on a Wednesday.
Everyone wearing pink instead of black.
Gretchen’s hair deflated: secret-less, her hoop earrings
catching drops of the rain Karen predicted
with a 30% chance, but it was already happening.
If the snake that bites you dies, you still need
to suck the poison out, but humans aren’t snakes
our burn book poisons are different.
With no reconciliatory nods across the schoolyard,
all of the junior girls would still feel
personally victimized piling into the bleachers.
They would probably need the kind of therapy
that Tina Fey cannot provide in the school gymnasium
where they can only keep you till four.
Though perhaps the more looming question:
in the disco glow of the spring fling
would they still ask Cady to be their queen,
would her delicate hands still take the tiara
from her head, still snap it, or leave it
untouched, pristine and plastic?
Abby Bland (she/they) is an award-winning writer and performer whose work has appeared in many publications. Her one-person spoken word show Godzilla’s Not A Dinosaur took home “Best of Venue” at the 2023 KC Fringe and she’s a 2 time winner of Best Spoken Word Artist in The Pitch. They’re on Instagram @applestoabby and you can read more of their work at abbyblandpoetry.com.
