Verse 1 She walked in ten minutes late Same smile from the pictures, just a little less staged The light in the photos had been kinder Years and angles doing most of the labor Bob stood up, pulled out her chair Didn’t let the difference hang in the air Pre-Chorus She knew. He knew. Neither one named it. Chorus Filter fail, filter fail Reality showed up without the soft glow I still ordered the wine, still made her laugh Filter fail… but I stayed soft Filter fail, filter fail The algorithm sold me a better version I paid the full price and tipped polite Filter fail… still treated her right Verse 2 Conversation found its feet after a while She was sharper than the captions, quicker with a smile He caught himself almost saying something dumb Bit the words back, let the moment run Two people pretending the gap wasn’t there Just two chairs and a carefully shared air Chorus Filter fail, filter fail Reality showed up without the soft glow I still ordered the wine, still made her laugh Filter fail… but I stayed soft Filter fail, filter fail The algorithm sold me a better version I paid the full price and tipped polite Filter fail… still treated her right Bridge At the end she said “this was really nice” He said “you too” and meant it enough No one pointed at the mirror No one needed to call the bluff Final Chorus Filter fail, filter fail Reality showed up without the soft glow I still walked her to the car, still opened the door Filter fail… won’t do that anymore Filter fail… Bob just keeps the receipts of hope
