Coffee in my left hand, keys in my right Jaw locked tight at a red traffic light Screen says nine and I answer on cue Thumb keeps shaking like it knows something true I make the call, keep my voice in line Say, "Yeah, no problem," for the fifth damn time But my breath hits short when the room sits still Like my body found a threat that my eyes never will I can file every warning away I can smile while the signal decays But the pulse in my hands won't lie And the noise has a name in daylight Static under skin Every nerve is wearing thin No one sees the shape I'm in But I can hear it kicking in Static under skin I won't call it nothing again Lunch at my desk, two bites, no taste Calendar blocks every gap I could waste Knee keeps time with the fan overhead Same four words keep looping in my head Handle the list, keep the sequence clean Wipe down the counter, don't make a scene Then a door clicks shut and my shoulders jump Pulse slams up to the back of my tongue I know this hall, I know every face So why does my chest think I need to escape? I count to four, but the count runs fast Put one task down, feel ten more stack I can file every warning away I can smile while the signal decays But the pulse in my hands won't lie And the noise has a name in daylight Static under skin Every nerve is wearing thin No one sees the shape I'm in Now I hear it kicking in Static under skin I won't call it nothing again Stop telling myself it's a phase Stop packing it away My teeth hurt from the pressure My hands won't stay in place This body kept the record Of every time I grinned If I won't say it out loud It screams beneath my skin Static under skin Every nerve is wearing thin No one sees the shape I'm in But I know this isn't nothing Static under skin Still the signal won't go quiet Static under skin I won't call it nothing again It didn't stop. I just stopped calling it nothing.
