rules

verse 1] i showed up, thinking effort was enough. said the right things, stayed late, acted tough. no one handed me a list to read. i just copied what i’d seen. i thought trying hard covered the gaps. that good intentions filled in the cracks. i didn’t mean to cross that line. i just didn’t know it was there that time. [pre-chorus] no warning signs, on the wall. no pause before the fall. i was moving like i always did. and that was part of it. [chorus] there were rules i didn’t know i was breaking. costs i didn’t see at the start. i wasn’t trying to fuck it up. i was just doing my part. there were rules i didn’t know i was breaking. no excuses left to claim. what i missed still counts as mine. i know its not the same. [verse 2] i learned fast once it was too late. some lessons don’t negotiate. you don’t get time to explain. you just carry what remains. i replay moments, not to rewind. just to see what i left behind. i wasn’t careless, i was blind. and that truth is hard to deny. [pre-chorus] no handbook in my hands. just habits i didn’t plan. i followed them without a pause. until they took more than i thought. [chorus] there were rules i didn’t know i was breaking. lines i never meant to cross. i didn’t wake up trying to fail. but that doesn’t change the cost. there were rules i didn’t know i was breaking. and now i know too well. you don’t choose the moment it hits. you just live with what it tells. [bridge] i don’t say this to be spared. i don’t say this for release. i say it so i don’t pretend. i was something else entirely. i’m not asking for a pass. i’m not asking to forget. i’m learning how to stand still. with what i didn’t get. [solo intricate musical solo.] [final chorus] there were rules i didn’t know i was breaking. but i know them now by heart. i don’t need to rewrite the past. this is my fresh start. there were rules i didn’t know i was breaking. i won’t claim i was misled. i can’t change what i didn’t see. i can change what happens next. [outro] i move slower now... i check twice... i follow thru... that’s the difference.