# Shadow Math (Duet) **[Verse 1 — He]** I trace the skyline with a borrowed pen, Cheap motel wisdom on a napkin, You say the night believes in second tries— I nod and tune the doubt inside the night. **[Verse 1 — She]** You wear that shadow like armor on a wire, Waiting inside for a synthy choir; If faith beats brave, it’s learning how to stay, I mask the chords, you look the other way. **[Pre-Chorus — Both]** If courage is a chorus, let it start, Two names in wet cement, a neon heart; We talk in late-night signals, sung by dares, A promise humming faintly in the air. **[Chorus — Both]** We won’t need crowns or perfect lines tonight, We’ll raise a cheap guitar against the night; If hope is out of tune, we’ll bend it right— Hold the note, hold the note, hold the note. We’ll write our names in margins no one reads, Trade empty prayers for ordinary deeds; If all we have is this and it proceeds— Hold the note, hold the note, hold. --- **[Verse 2 — She]** You say the city speaks in telegraph, I hear a pulse beneath the paragraph; We don’t need fireworks, we need a fuse, A vow that doesn’t care if we can lose. **[Verse 2 — He]** I’ve been the echo, I have been the wall, I’ve thrown my voice to make the room feel tall; But you, you turn a whisper into proof— The roof stops being roof, becomes a roof. **[Pre-Chorus — Both]** If mercy is a measure, count to ten, Let’s fail with style, then try it all again; A single bright refrain we won’t outgrow, A steady hand that tells the city: go. --- **[Bridge — Spoken/Sung in harmony, call-and-response]** **He:** “It’s more than what we believe instead of what we need I follow shadows in my eyes and before I stop I have to try There’s nothing else to add except what we lack I was never very good at math” **She:** “That’s what music is notes that shine inside their bed So do I, sometimes I even cry So do I” **[Lift — Both, softly]** If numbers fail, then let the melody decide, If maps run out, we’ll let the river be our guide. --- **[Chorus — Both, bigger]** We won’t need crowns or perfect lines tonight, We’ll raise a cheap guitar against the night; If hope is out of tune, we’ll bend it right— Hold the note, hold the note, hold the note. We’ll write our names in margins no one reads, Trade empty prayers for ordinary deeds; If all we have is this and it proceeds— Hold the note, hold the note, hold. **[Outro — He & She, entwined]** Call it brave, call it plain, call it ours, Streetlight hymns and unpretending stars; Not a legend, just a living, beating part— Two voices, one electric heart.
