Water Behind the Walls [Intro] Vinyl in the kitchen, door hinge singin' low Paper in a shoebox, I ain't know, I ain't know [Verse 1] Five in the morning, Mama ironed out the creases Dark house, one lamp, making little out of pieces Fridge had mustard, baking soda, cold air, faith Lights blink twice, "bill in the mail," that was grace Now I'm back home in a car with a note Same cracked curb, same chain link, same porch Whole block look smaller when your checks get tall She opened that door slower than I recall Folded me in with that lavender shirt smell Asked about my flight like everything was still well I saw her hand shake reaching up for the latch Like time left a watermark right under the paint [Pre-Chorus] Closet full of winters, church fans, old receipts One box said "tax stuff" in her pharmacy ink I pulled one string and the whole wall talked Funny how the truth sound soft before it drops [Chorus] Water behind the walls Whole house looked fine to us Smiles on the fridge and all Meanwhile the beams gave up Water behind the walls I thought love was just that strong Now every "don't worry 'bout it" Sound like a pipe gone wrong [Verse 2] Second mortgage dated same year I moved in school Parent PLUS letters stacked neat like rules Minimum payments circled hard in blue pen Payday loan envelope tucked under coupons Medical bill folded into a baby picture My cap and gown grin sitting right beside the figure I had honors cords, she had interest piling I had move-in day, she was skipping refills smiling Every "we good" got a number on it now Every field trip shirt got a method and account I remember pizza nights, thought it came from joy Now I know a credit line can cosplay as choice Envelope tear in the snare, soul loop keep crying Pen scratch on the beat like a check still drying [Pre-Chorus] I asked why you ain't say it, she just shrugged one shoulder Said, "Baby, you had enough to hold already" Then she reached for the box like it might break me Too late, the whole room was underwater, heavy [Chorus] Water behind the walls Whole house looked fine to us Smiles on the fridge and all Meanwhile the beams gave up Water behind the walls I thought love was just that strong Now every "don't worry 'bout it" Sound like a pipe gone wrong [Verse 3] Graduation picture cost more than the frame Forty-seven thousand hanging off one name First apartment toast with the cheap white wine Paid by hands going numb on a second time clock Success looked clean in the photos online But retirement got traded for my finish line Arthritis in the knuckles that packed my whole room Her body was the bridge and I ran right through That's the part nobody posts when the story gets told How the stairway got built from somebody else's bones First-gen ain't a ladder, it's a carry job And the strongest one in front take the worst of the load [Bridge] I said, "Let me take the mortgage" She laughed like I was still ten Said, "That ain't yours to carry" But it already had been Not the bank, the years Not the note, your knees Not the bill, the breath You spent making room for me [Verse 4] Drove back to the airport with my jaw locked tight Called from the terminal, kept the talk light Asked if she ate, told her I'd land by nine She said, "Text me when you touch down," same line But every word hit strange, like a tape near the end Like hearing somebody living and mourning them then Rearview caught her waving, porch light, house still Small as a stamp, standing perfectly still [Chorus] Water behind the walls Whole house looked fine to us Smiles on the fridge and all Meanwhile the beams gave up Water behind the walls Some damage don't shout at all Love kept the paint from peeling While everything held us up [Outro] Vinyl still spinning, crackle in the hall You can't see the leak till it lives in us all Hard stop Loop Water behind the walls. Whole house looked fine to us. Smiles on the fridge and all. Meanwhile the beams gave up. Water behind the walls. I thought love was just that strong. Now every "don't worry 'bout it". Sound like a pipe gone wrong.
