[Intro – alternating handclaps from opposite sides, muted floor-tom pulse, nylon-string guitar taps join; both voices enter before the full groove] [Female Lead – fully sung] I took one step toward you [Male Counterpart – fully sung] I thought you’d take the rest [Female Lead] You waited for surrender [Male Counterpart] You called my distance pride [Full Groove – dry Latin-influenced percussion, melodic bass, nylon-string rhythm guitar, compact live drums] [Verse 1 – Female Lead] I kept moving every boundary Just to make the space feel small You kept standing where I left you Waiting for me to cross it all I don’t need you to agree With every reason that I give I just need to see you moving If we’re both still choosing this [Verse 2 – Male Counterpart] I thought meeting in the middle Meant betraying what I knew So I guarded every inch And called it staying true But love cannot be measured By who gives the least away If I want you close beside me I have to move your way [Pre-Chorus – rapid melodic handoff] [Female] Not all mine [Male] Not all yours [Female] Not one winner [Male] Not one loss [Both – close harmony] Half the distance Both the cost [Chorus – true duet, separate melodies joining in harmony] [Female] Meet me in the middle [Male] I’m already on my way [Female] Don’t make me cross the whole room [Male] Don’t make me beg you to stay [Both] We don’t have to lose ourselves To find a place where both can live Meet me in the middle Bring the half You’re willing to give [Post-Chorus – handclap motif and short vocal overlap] [Female] Half the distance [Male] Half the fear [Both] Meet me here [Instrumental Break – percussion dialogue, melodic bass and nylon-string guitar, no vocals] [Verse 3 – alternating sung lines] [Male] I can soften without folding [Female] I can listen without fear [Male] You can keep your point of view [Female] And still come closer here [Male] Maybe compromise is not [Female] The death of what we need [Both] Maybe meeting in the middle Is how two truths can breathe [Bridge – percussion reduces to handclaps and low tom] [Female] I won’t ask you to become me [Male] I won’t ask you to give in [Female] Take one honest step toward me [Male] And I’ll meet you where it ends [Both] No one crosses all the distance No one waits behind a wall [Short silence] [Female] Are you moving? [Male] Yes [Female] So am I [Final Chorus – compact full duet, warmer band return] [Female] Meet me in the middle [Male] I can see you on your way [Female] We can keep the parts that matter [Male] And release what pride became [Both] We don’t have to lose ourselves To find a place where both can live Meet me in the middle Not halfway in our love Halfway in the distance Both fully choosing it [Drums leave; handclaps continue once from each side] [Female – softly sung] One step [Male – softly sung] One step [Both – intimate harmony] Now we’re standing Face to face [One shared guitar chord – clean stop]
