Kai Thigpen
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murder/murder
i killed the girl,
shards of her lodged
beneath my cheekbones,
in my hips
you find the inflation “pretty"
i killed her as soon as i knew
as soon as i could
i killed the girl & i survived
you wave at her, try to strike
up a conversation
blood in the grooves of my
fingertips
you appear at my side with gauze
for her wounds
from now on, i promise, just strings
just poems
just form after form with my signature
where are the forms
with her name, you ask
i promise, maybe ink or paint, but no more
when she died her carcass stayed
your hair would be beautiful
if you grew it out
suspended in front of my body
people keep calling out to her
& i need to let them know, sorry,
it’s just me
you don’t hear me. you keep talking
Poet Biography
Kai Thigpen is a social worker who provides therapy to LGBT+ community members. Poems of theirs have previously appeared in several publications including Zymbol, Handsome, and Wild Age Press; they were nominated for the Best New Poets anthology in 2015.