[Intro] (Distorted bass line mimicking the rhythm of a heart monitor, fading into a heavy, stomping drum beat) [Verse 1] Living on a fraction, counting every dime Guilty of a sickness, serving out the time They say the safety net is there to break the fall But I'm staring at the bottom, backed against the wall Minimum wage is a heavy enough chain But disability's a fraction of the blood and the pain Cut a living down to a quarter of the size And wrap it in a ribbon of bureaucratic lies [Pre-Chorus] Every piece of paper, every single call Begging for a lifeline, talking to a wall A rubber stamp of "No" on every plea to heal Tell me how I'm supposed to survive this raw deal?! [Chorus] Broken in the system, drowning in the red! Fighting for the medicine to get out of this bed! They weigh a human life against a bottom line And leave the broken pieces at the back of the line Yeah, they fight every treatment, deny every test Leaving us with nothing while we're doing our best! [Verse 2] You need a simple fix, they make you wait a year Living in the shadow of the agony and fear They challenge every doctor, question every ache Pushing you right to the edge, just to see you break It's a full-time job just proving you're alive While they pull away the coverage you need to survive [Pre-Chorus] Every piece of paper, every single call Begging for a lifeline, talking to a wall A rubber stamp of "No" on every plea to heal Tell me how I'm supposed to survive this raw deal?! [Chorus] Broken in the system, drowning in the red! Fighting for the medicine to get out of this bed! They weigh a human life against a bottom line And leave the broken pieces at the back of the line Yeah, they fight every treatment, deny every test Leaving us with nothing while we're doing our best! [Bridge] (Tempo slows down, isolated gritty bass, whispered to a scream) I'm not a liability... I'm not a red stain... I didn't ask to live my life inside this much pain! Stop playing with the numbers! Stop moving the goal! You're cutting off the funding, but you're killing the soul! [Guitar Solo] (Frantic, aggressive, shredding guitar over heavy double-kick drums) [Chorus] Broken in the system, drowning in the red! Fighting for the medicine to get out of this bed! They weigh a human life against a bottom line And leave the broken pieces at the back of the line Yeah, they fight every treatment, deny every test Leaving us with nothing while we're doing our best! [Outro] (Staccato chords, heavy cymbals) Denied. Delayed. The bottom line is paid. Just a number on a page. (Fading out with a low, distorted bass hum) [End]
