Marion, narrating in the present, remembers his mornings with Ghosh and Hema, and how after they left for work, Rosina, an Eritrean woman, would take care of them. Ghosh, Hema, and the twins all lived together, and Almaz was their housekeeper. Rosina, their nanny, was pregnant with Genet, who became a friend and nearly a sister to the twins.

Marion reflects on a song that Almaz sang called “Tizita,” which is now a way for him to connect with other Ethiopians in America.

Shiva and Marion are seven years old, and Genet is six. When Hema and Ghosh take the twins to the market in Addis Ababa, they are a spectacle. The boys are never apart, so people treat them as if they are one person. Marion speaks for both of them, and because of this, the adults in Missing do not realize that Shiva has not spoken in two years. Around the age of four, Shiva stops speaking but shows his intelligence in other ways, from math to drawing.

At first, Hema does not believe Shiva is not speaking, and then she blames herself. She and Ghosh begin a campaign to get Shiva to speak, but Marion loses his temper and tells them that Shiva will speak when he is ready.