Flecks

Crouched under my desk
Counting the strands in the carpet
Surrounded by my friends

The carpet's mainly blue
With flecks of green and red
The drill will only last a few moments

My parents said
They loved me before I left for school this morning
Though they begged for me to stay

As I got on the bus
I heard the radio station play a warning
Though they urged me not to worry

So I counted the flecks of snow as they fell by my window

One, two, three, four
Five, six, seven, eight
Nine, ten, eleven, twelve
Thirteen, fourteen, fifteen, sixteen

My teacher said
That there was no reason to worry
She had gone through worse when she was 10

So I cover my neck under the desk
And count the strands in the carpet
And wait for the drill to end

One, two, three, four
Five, six, seven, eight
Nine, ten, eleven, twelve
Thirteen, fourteen, fifteen, sixteen
Seventeen, eighteen, nineteen, twenty
Twenty-one, twenty-two, twenty-three, twenty-four

But the light through the window gets brighter and brighter
And the carpet turns from navy to baby blue
And the counting gets louder and louder
And the crying begins and gets louder and louder

I open my lungs to breathe
A million flecks of glass and dust enter me
But I keep on counting
Seconds until someone saves me
Mother, father someone save me
Brother, sister someone save me
Classmate, teacher someone save me
Firefighters come please save me
I can't keep on counting, counting
I can't keep on breathing, breathing
I can't save me, I can't save me