Arkey, Yellow Belly Rolling

Intro

Ooh-oh, ooh-oh, ahh

Arkey, Arkey, hey-yi-ya (hey-yi-ya)

Verse

There’s a yellow shape beneath the pier, he hums a lunch-line tune

Two thousand kilos rolling slow, a moon that stays in noon

He wears a grin of ketchup stains, a belly like a bay

He waves a fin at every boat, they speed the other way

Yeah, he loves the taste of midnight fries, (nom-nom) burgers one by one

Drive-thru sirens in his dreams, a neon-free donut sun

He tries to laugh, he tries to play, but waves go past too fast

Arkey opens up his mouth — a soda can, (chug-chug) and a gasp

Pre-chorus

No sleep in his aquarium of longing, (ooh)

No high-five, no splash of someone saying "stay"

Just wrappers in the tide, and a loneliness that hums

He whispers to the moon (hey), he mouths a stray "okay"

Chorus

Arkey, Arkey, yellow belly rolling (Ar-key, Ar-key)

Two-thousand kilos, loving fast food and strolling (Ar-key, Ar-key)

Arkey, Arkey, nobody to call him buddy (oh-oh)

Arkey, Arkey, fries in hand, heart heavy, but he’s funny

Arkey, Arkey, yellow belly rolling (Ar-key, Ar-key)

Two-thousand kilos, loving fast food and strolling (Ar-key, Ar-key)

Arkey, Arkey, nobody to call him buddy (yeah)

Arkey, Arkey, fries in hand, heart heavy, but he’s funny (na-na)

Verse

He tries to join a school of fish, they scatter with a squeal

He sings about the value meal, they dart like silver steel

He learned to love the cardboard cup, the crunch that fills his fins

But late at night he pokes a hole where friendship might get in

Murmurs of the pier say "scary grin," the kids toss pebbles by

He collects them like awards, sets them up beneath the sky

Once he danced with bioluminescent chips, a clumsy, glorious spin

He slipped on a sesame seed and wished that someone would jump in

Pre-chorus

He hums old jingles like a lullaby (la-la)

Rehearses how to say "hello" without a bite

He practices his funny face, a hopeful kind of try

Maybe someone will see the good inside the light

Chorus

Arkey, Arkey, yellow belly rolling (Ar-key, Ar-key)

Two-thousand kilos, loving fast food and strolling (Ar-key, Ar-key)

Arkey, Arkey, nobody to call him buddy (oh-oh)

Arkey, Arkey, fries in hand, heart heavy, but he’s funny

Arkey, Arkey, yellow belly rolling (Ar-key, Ar-key)

Two-thousand kilos, loving fast food and strolling (Ar-key, Ar-key)

Arkey, Arkey, nobody to call him buddy (yeah)

Arkey, Arkey, fries in hand, heart heavy, but he’s funny (na-na)

Bridge

What if he learned to trade a fry for a friend? (hey)

What if he smoked his last soda and held a hand? (uh-huh)

He imagines tiny tea parties on the reef, a ring of laughing fins

He practices a softer bite, a smaller grin, a softer spin

Maybe he’ll share a burger bun, (share it) split a milkshake straw

Maybe he'll find a little crew that likes him just because

And even if he keeps his cravings, he’s more than what he eats

A yellow moon that rolls along