"I don't mean to victim blame here, but..." [VERSE 1 – intimate, dry wit, mid-tempo alt-pop / indie] I dress my fear in sarcasm So it passes as a grin Every birthday feels like gossip That my body’s letting in I was fifteen, feeling ancient Like the party came too soon Now I’m older, acting vacant Like the joke’s on the room I collect the tiny bruises From the corners of my pride Say I’m “fine” in seven languages None of them survive I wear calm like a costume Tailored just to fit But the seams keep coming undone Every time I sit [PRE-CHORUS – lift, subtle build] I rehearse my own vanishing In the theatre of my head Then I bow to the mirror It forgets what I said [CHORUS – soaring, bittersweet hook] I wander like a wavering fool Trying hard to feel brand new I run out of time just to get to you I run out of lies to tell the truth I’m a relic in a rented youth Dressed in borrowed attitude If love is a room with a closing door I’m always late...and I knock too soon [VERSE 2 – reflective, generational, slight bite] The kids don’t know our anthems They don’t need our old refrains We were sacred in the feedback Now we’re ghosts in the machine I’ve got faith in nothing holy Just the habit of my doubt Every hope comes with conditions Every “in” requires an “out” I build fences out of punchlines So no one sees the crack Wave flags made out of rumours Then salute the fact I’m trapped I call comfort “a concept” So I don’t have to choose I rehearse all my exits Then forget which one’s the truth [PRE-CHORUS 2 – restrained, wry] Infinity sounds romantic Till it asks me for proof So I settle for the present In a suit that doesn’t suit [CHORUS – fuller, stacked vocals] I wander like a wavering fool Trying hard to feel brand new I run out of time just to get to you I run out of lies to tell the truth I’m a relic in a rented youth With a vintage point of view If love is a room with a closing door I arrive too late...but I stay too long [BRIDGE – half-spoken, confessional, minimal beat] Poetry teaches me to stall Truth knocks quiet through the wall I nod like I’ve heard it all Then miss the point and call it “art” I’m strapped to now like a cheap disguise Playing Santa for empty lives Even joy comes with a price And I’ve been paying in goodbyes [BREAKDOWN / WHISPERED HOOK – breathy, doubled, distant] Down… Down… I’m sinking in my shoes Down… Down… With no water in view [FINAL CHORUS – biggest emotional lift] I wander like a wavering fool Trying hard to feel brand new I run out of time just to get to you I run out of breath before I move I’m a relic in a rented youth With a sentimental bruise