Crown of Concrete

[Verse 1] He drew monsters in his math book Teeth and traffic cones and broken glass Principal said he was troubled He just stared right through the class Lunchroom cameras caught him pacing Tracing cracks along the floor Counted every silent footstep Like a code for something more [Chorus] Crown of concrete Heavy on a hollow head You made a story out of him Then you left him there unread Crown of concrete Set it like a halo wrong This is what it looks like When a young life goes so wrong [Verse 2] Apartment 7B was quiet TV glow on peeling walls Mother chained to midnight YouTube Father shrinking into calls Empty fridge and empty ashtrays Empty chair at parent night He learned early how a promise Is just absence wrapped in white [Chorus] Crown of concrete Heavy on a hollow head You wrote warnings on his folders Never asked what they had meant Crown of concrete Bent beneath your Sunday songs This is what it sounds like When a young life goes so wrong [Bridge] [Band drops to low strings and distant choir] He carved names into the railing Third floor outside homeroom C His Then yours Then something violent Spelled in shaky secrecy Sirens swallow all his questions (hey) Red and blue across the snow Under tape and cardboard coffee Someone whispers “We should go” [Chorus] Crown of concrete Heavy where the flowers lay You bring candles You bring cameras You will leave the same old way Crown of concrete Cold above a borrowed song Say his name Then change the channel Another young life dead and gone [Outro] [Choir swells Drums slow to half-time] He drew monsters in his math book Now you frame them on the wall Call it warning Call it heartbreak But you never made the call