The Paper Girl

[Intro — very slow heartbeat] [Deep bass and kick like a heartbeat] [Distant music box] [Sparse clean guitar] [Female vocal, almost childlike whisper] [Verse 1 — fragile, intimate] Once there lived a paper girl inside a paper house, With paper curtains on the windows and paper flowers out. She'd smooth her little paper dress and straighten every seam, Then stand beside the candlelight to study what she'd be. She'd fold herself a little more whenever she looked wide, And tuck away the crooked bits she couldn't stand inside. [Pre-Chorus — whispered] [Heartbeat slightly louder] And she'd whisper to the glass, As if it whispered back: [Mirror — barely audible whisper] Back... [Chorus — slow doom guitars enter] [Clean female vocal, sorrowful] To the stranger in the mirror Who knows every flaw I keep, The face that's so familiar, Who cuts a little too deep. You show me every ugly truth, The parts I try to hide — I turn away to tear myself apart Just to fix what's wrong inside. [Instrumental] [Heavy sustained guitar] [Heartbeat continues] [Verse 2 — restrained] They told the paper girl she was pretty, So she tried to play along, But she could see a thousand mistakes Where everyone else saw none. She took a little pencil To draw herself anew, Erase a line, redraw a curve, Until the page wore through. She smoothed the wrinkles with her hands, As though they weren't her own, And every time she changed her shape She felt a little less at home. [Refrain — music box beneath bass] Just one more fold, Just one more crease... One little change And I'll finally be at peace. [Childlike choir — distant] Hush now, paper girl, don't you cry. Close the curtains, turn off the light. Fold the edges, smooth the seams. Make yourself the way you dream. [Verse 3 — music drops almost completely] [Heartbeat alone] [Clean vocal becomes increasingly uneasy] The paper house grew smaller As she folded walls within. She made the windows narrower So no one could look in. She stopped inviting people round, She said she liked the quiet, But every night before the glass She'd start another fight. [Low distorted guitar enters] Jekyll and Hyde The ugly side I hide I want to turn away But I always come back Face to face Again with you [Mirror — low distorted whisper] You're too wide. [Female vocal — frightened] No... [Mirror] You're too strange. [Female vocal] Stop... [Mirror — harsher] Why can't you just stay the same? [Female vocal] I don't know... [Mirror — harsh whisper] You were prettier yesterday. [Female vocal, breaking] Please... [Mirror — harsh vocal] WHY CAN'T YOU ALWAYS LOOK THAT WAY? [Instrumental — heartbeat becomes heavier] [Bridge — crushing doom riff] [Clean and harsh vocals begin to overlap] [Clean] She took the blade, The mirror took the lead, To fix every error Her shadow decreed. [Mirror — harsh underneath] FIX IT. [Clean] She folded her edges, She pulled at her skin, To force herself smaller Than she'd ever been. [Mirror — harsh] SMALLER. SMALLER. [Clean, increasingly desperate] Erase every shadow, Rub out every line, She worked on her body To redefine. [Mirror — harsh, overlapping] ERASE IT. ERASE IT. [Clean] She pressed down too hard, And the paper wore thin... [Mirror — full harsh scream] THINNER. [Sudden silence] [Clean whisper] Until there was nothing left Holding her in. [Long silence] [Final Chorus — enormous doom-metal wall] [Massive bass and drums] [Clean vocal with harsh Mirror layered underneath] [Clean] To the stranger in the mirror Who watched the canvas break: There's nothing left to fold away, No more mistakes to make. [Mirror — low harsh layer] No more mistakes... [Clean] The pencil wore down to the wood, The paper tore in two. [Both — building] In trying to fix every piece of herself— [Harsh vocal] THERE'S NOTHING LEFT OF YOU. [Massive instrumental impact] [Clean vocal, devastated] Nothing left... [Harsh echo] Nothing left. [Outro — everything collapses] [Music box] [Faint heartbeat] [Clean female vocal, childlike again] Hush now, paper girl, Don't make a sound. There's nothing of you Left to be found. Folded too small, Erased through the skin... You fixed every flaw, But there's no one within. [Music box alone] Hush now, paper girl, Close your eyes. You finally reached Your perfect size. [Very faint Mirror whisper] Perfect... [Clean whisper] Folded away... Nothing left to tear... Looked in the mirror... But no one was there. [Mirror — barely audible harsh breath] No one... [One final heartbeat] [Silence] [End]