The Doctor Will See You Now

[Live Intro – muffled crowd chatter, one glass clinks, room tone, icy arpeggio begins] [Verse 1 – fragile male vocal, live room reverb, sparse piano and icy clicks] I signed my name beneath the light The paper shook, the ink turned white The room went still, the curtains bowed The Doctor smiled behind the crowd He checked my pulse, then checked the door Said, “You’ve been here once before” I laughed like that could not be true But why’d the room remember you? [Pre-Chorus – cello enters, sub-bass low and physical] And the lights go blue And my hands go numb Everybody leans in close Like the worst is yet to come [Chorus – live band blooms, layered harmonies, crowd swallowed by reverb] So cut the spotlight open Let it spill across the floor I came here barely breathing Now I’m begging it for more Oh, Doctor, keep your gloves on I don’t trust what you might find There’s a sickness in the singing There’s a fever in the lights [Verse 2 – sharper rhythm, smoky lounge energy, brittle arpeggio louder] The drummer tapped a crooked vein The cello dragged a silver chain The bassline moved beneath my skin Like something cold was crawling in The audience began to sway Like they had practiced yesterday I tried to leave, the exits moved Who taught the walls to watch me too? [Pre-Chorus – tension rises, percussion clicks like medical tools] And the lights go blue And my voice goes thin Everybody holds their breath Like the knife is going in [Chorus – bigger, painful high harmony] So cut the spotlight open Let it spill across the floor I came here barely breathing Now I’m begging it for more Oh, Doctor, keep your gloves on I don’t trust what you might find There’s a sickness in the singing There’s a fever in the lights [Bridge – stripped live breakdown, only cello, piano, distant crowd] Maybe I came to be cured Maybe I came to be seen Maybe the stage is a table Maybe the wound is the dream Maybe applause is a siren Maybe the silence is worse Maybe I wanted the ending Maybe I needed the hurt [Verse 3 – intimate, almost whispered, crowd dead silent] The Doctor leaned into the glow Said, “Son, there’s something you should know The thing you fear is not disease It’s what you become when you’re believed” The crowd stood up, the ceiling cracked The frozen air came flooding back I opened wide, the song came through If I survive it, do I belong to you? [Final Chorus – cathartic, full live band, harmonies breaking, crowd noise rising] So cut the spotlight open Let it spill across the floor I came here barely breathing Now I’m begging it for more Oh, Doctor, keep your gloves on I don’t trust what you might find There’s a sickness in the singing There’s a fever in the lights Cut the spotlight open Let the whole room watch me burn If the cure is being witnessed Then I’m never going first [Outro – arpeggio flickers, cello fades, audience stunned silent, then scattered applause] [Spoken, breathless] Thank you. I think.