[Soft Hazy Intro – gentle guitar wash, breathy hums] [Verse 1 – whispered intimate, sparse reverb] I walk these streets alone... shadow cuts into the bone... waiting on a hand I’ve never known. The night sings like a whip... salted wounds on my lips... dreaming of a touch I’ll never get. [Pre-Chorus – building softly, layered echoes] I call out... I call out... Calling across the sea... But the echo comes back empty... Oh... nothing’s ever free... [Chorus – breathy soaring, hazy swells] Hold me close... like you mean to stay... kiss my brow... take the ache away... Lay... me... down... in your arms tonight... and breathe me whole... till I feel... light... [Verse 2 – intimate grit, distant guitar] Wine on my breath... names I chase but never learn... bodies warm... but still I burn... Kisses sharp as knives... hands that tremble... slip away... I’m a stranger by the break of day... [Pre-Chorus – quiet swell, subtle layers] As you’re walking out the door... My heart slips on the floor... Never thought you’d make me free... But now I’m lost in what could be... [Chorus – fuller haze, ethereal reverb] Hold me close... like you mean to stay... kiss my brow... take the ache away... Lay... me... down... in your arms tonight... and breathe... me... whole... till I feel... light... [Bridge – unraveling softly, dreamy drift] Something’s pulling at my seams... dragging my soul through borrowed dreams... You brush my skin — I come undone... a fevered prayer to anyone... There’s scarlet in the black and blue... the night reshapes itself for you... I’m sinking fast... I’m almost gone... but in your arms... I’m coming home... [Final Chorus – gentle climax, floating layers] Hold me close... like you mean to stay... kiss my brow... take the ache away... Lay... me... down... in your arms tonight... and breathe... me... whole... till I feel... light... [Outro – fading whispers, heavy reverb echo] And a feeling unknown shook my heart... made me want you to stay... But I’m here... and you’re there... with the words we never say... Hold me close... like you mean to stay... Like you mean to stay… [Whispered pleading, ghostly fade] stay... ......like you mean to stay...
