Missing pieces

She woke up to discover
there were pieces of her missing,
portions plucked from skin
not ready to give them up,
only flaps of flesh remained -
like the smooth, wet holes
that wisdom teeth leave behind:
cavernous openings missing bone
and enamel, half-concealed by gums
that slowly collapse over the vacant spaces.

Again she would need to pinch
the folds together and wait for the skin
to seal with a scab, to swallow the wounds
with a scar, to enclose the vacancy like a vault.
Let the empty pockets heal into silence.