[Intro – Flow: spoken like memory; Vocal: DP, low tone; Beat: soft Rhodes, sleigh bells, mall chatter, low vinyl hum] Cinnamon air, floor wax shine, Mom’s in line, I’m killing time. Camera flash, fake snow fall, big red chair, plastic wall. Didn’t know one photo still could sting, cheap beard, cold hands, cheap ring. [Verse 1 – Flow: East-coast bounce; Vocal: Sinix, half-laughing] Ho-ho-hold up, look at this dude, red suit sag, attitude rude. Sweat through fur, cologne and gin, boot scuffs shiny from who knows when. Mom said smile, I showed my teeth, he smelled like smoke and tinsel grief. Kid behind yelled, “Santa’s here!” tag on the sleeve said “Barry – Sears.” That’s when faith took sick leave, mall cop waved, I didn’t believe. [Hook – Flow: gospel swing; Vocals: DP lead, Sinix ad-lib; Beat: choir hum, bells, snare shuffle] Santa ain’t real, but the heart still is, every lie built peace for a broken kid. Lights burn out, but the warmth don’t fade, we still sing the mess they made. [Sinix whisper:] yeah, keep singin’. [Verse 2 – Flow: slow storyteller; Vocal: DP] Maybe he was tired, rent past due, used that chair like preachers do. Ten-buck check, fake joy on cue, played Saint Nick for a line of fools. You saw fraud, I saw man, doing what any broke man can. Christmas ain’t truth, it’s mercy’s play, people need magic to make it through day. [Bridge – Flow: overlapping; Sinix quick, DP steady] [Sinix:] Fake snow, fake smiles, fake crowd cheer. [DP:] Pretend can still make hope appear. [Sinix:] He lied! [DP:] He tried. [Sinix:] That’s scam! [DP:] That’s pride. [Verse 3 – Flow: high-speed chopper triplet cadence in 12/8 swing; Vocal: Sinix manic, breath-controlled bursts; Beat: double-time boom-bap with sleigh bells, swing hats, toy piano; Background: faint children’s choir softly chanting reindeer names] Why one deer in the lot outside? Dasher gone, Dancer high. Prancer plastered, Vixen late, Comet said screw it, Cupid on break. Donner snitched, Blitzen split, Rudolph bulb burned out, that’s it. Sleigh don’t fly, that’s fake snow, you clock in, that’s payroll bro. Cookies stale, milk long sour, elves laid off by the quarter hour. Said “I cross the world,” my guy please, you can’t leave town with them bad knees. Bag say Clearance, belt say Sioux, hat smell like work, not chimney flue. Math don’t work, nine deer, one night, that’s more cap than Christmas lights. Jingle lies on a cash-wrap deal, Santa fake, but the broke feel real. [Hook – Flow: duet swing; Vocals: Sinix half-sung, DP calm harmony; Beat: warm choir and brass] Santa ain’t real, but the heart still is, every lie built peace for a broken kid. Sleigh bells fade, but the warmth don’t die, we still sing to the sky. [DP soft:] maybe that’s fine. [Sinix:] yeah… this time. [Verse 4 – Flow: slow confession; Vocal: DP, warm; Sinix hum behind] You ain’t wrong, just loud with pain, I held quiet to keep us sane. You saw dark, I saw spark, same kid split, same mark. That night cracked something true, half was me, half was you. Chair still red inside my head, and I still hear what the old man said. [Final Hook – Flow: unified 4/4; Vocals: both; Beat: full orchestra lift, choir, bells, snare rolls] Santa ain’t real, but the joy might be, you can feel it standing next to me. Suit was fake, but the love felt true, I believed once, now so do you. [Outro – Flow: spoken; Vocals: DP soft / Sinix grin; Background: toy piano and wind] [DP:] Even demons need December. [Sinix:] Yeah… even me.
