Backseat Driver

[Intro] [[Low purring, distorted, cuts in and out like a bad signal]] I used to be scared of cats. I don't remember why anymore? [Verse 1] Blood test came back positive, doctor said it's only mild, Said most people carry it, said don't go gettin' riled. Toxo-PLAZ-moh GON-dee-eye, curled up behind my eyes, Rewiring what I'm scared of, rewiring what I like... I used to cross the street away from strays, now I kneel down in the dirt, Let one drag its nasty claws across the back of my shirt. Something in my amygdala just went dim and quiet, Fear got traded out, and now I Gotta' Try It! [Verse 2] sniffin' old litter boxes, compulsion unknown, Standin in'a strange yard, not sure which ways home. The smell of ammonia does somethin to my spine, Like a key finally turnin to a lock in my mind.. looked my girlfriend in the eye and felt the calc-yoo-lay-shun run, Risk assessment overridden, fear replaced by reckless fun! It's not me decidin' anymore, who or what I chase — It's a single-celled parasite, steering for the taste. [Chorus] I'm not driving. -I'm just the car. Something else decidin' just how far.. Every risk I used to dodge, Feels like home now. Feelin' like a God! [Verse 3] They found it in the amygdala, found it in the fear, Saw it change the wiring to how host bodies steer. Rats climbin' straight into the jaws of a cat, Slide straight down it's throat, live and intact! (Hook) I let the stray back in tonight. I don't lock the door any more. Something in me wants to risk it all like never before. I'm not asking to be cured. I like the calm in my chest. The fear just left (so long!) and now I'm livin' out a quest [Bridge — whispered, close, unraveling] It's not a virus. I'm just takin' the back seat. It doesn't kill the host — it just steers the meat. I used to have a say in who I let get close. [[breathing quickens]] Now I just find out after, -Who the Parasite Chose! [Outro] [[Purring hum swells, sharp cat hiss, hard cut to total silence]]