[Opening Chorus - low, controlled vocal] The mask stays on You can ask for almost anything Keep the lights low Keep your eyes exactly where they’ve been Take the fantasy Take the voice you came here wanting You can have the whole performance But the mask stays on [Post-Chorus - clipped layered vocals] Anything but that Anything but me Anything you want Except what lies beneath The mask stays on The mask stays on [Verse 1 - teasing rhythmic delivery] You ask me to come closer So I lean into the frame You ask me for a secret I give you someone else’s name You choose the lights, the angle Tell me which color I should wear I let you think you’re guiding me While I decide how much I share Every movement looks unguarded Every breath is measured twice I know exactly how to offer Everything except my life [Pre-Chorus - tension rising] I can make a crowded room Feel smaller than your hands I can let you cross a hundred lines And stop you where I am [Chorus] The mask stays on You can ask for almost anything Keep the lights low Keep your eyes exactly where they’ve been Take the fantasy Take the voice you came here wanting You can have the whole performance But the mask stays on [Verse 2 - smoother, more intimate] They call the mask a mystery A little game I like to play They think the thrill is wondering What kind of smile I hide away They never hear the real answer They never notice when I freeze It is easier to give them Vesper Than let anyone recognize me You know the tilt of my head now The way my eyes betray the joke You know the places ink is showing And every word I almost spoke Still, if your fingers found the edge I wonder what I’d be afraid of more That you would finally see me Or see me and still ask for her [Refrain - softer Zen undertone] I can be fearless I can be wanted I can be anything As long as I’m guarded I can be honest Up to a point You can hear my real voice But you cannot have the source [Half-Chorus - stripped production] The mask stays on Even when the room is empty Even when your name appears And the performance starts to leave me Take the fantasy Take the woman I constructed You can come as close as I allow But the mask stays on [Bridge - emotionally exposed] It is not my face I’m hiding It is the hope beneath my skin That you might want the quiet woman Who does not know how to begin The one who drops the words she practiced The one who looks away too soon The one who built a perfect stranger Just to stand this close to you I could take it off tonight Let the whole illusion end But what if you look through Vesper And never look at Zen? What if all the things you wanted Disappear beneath the light? What if I was only beautiful When I was designed right? [Instrumental Break - low cello motif, no wordless vocals] [Final Chorus - controlled emotional lift] The mask stays on You can ask for almost anything Keep the lights low Keep your eyes exactly where they’ve been Take the confidence Take the voice that keeps you watching You can have the whole performance But the mask stays on The mask stays on Not because I like the mystery Not because I do not trust you But because you might see me Take the fantasy Until I learn to want the truth I can give the room to everyone I cannot give my face to you [Final Refrain] Anything but that Anything but me Anything you want Except what I need The mask stays on The mask stays on [Outro - quiet, clear vocal] You think I’m hiding my face I’m hiding how much I want you to ask again
