Hero's Night Shift

[Intro] [Slow build, acoustic guitar with MMA gym sounds in background] [Clock ticking... 11:47 PM] [Verse 1 - The Routine] [Melodic punk, steady rhythm, 180 bpm] Five foot two in this fucking fluorescent light Counting cigarettes and scratch cards every night Mum's at home, probably asleep by now Cleaning offices 'cause that's all life would allow I'm nineteen years and going nowhere fast Just another shop girl, invisible, outclassed But after closing when the shutters come down I shadowbox between the aisles, no one around [Verse 2 - The Memory] [Building intensity, add drums] Eighteen months back, Jake got his jaw broke Three guys with knives, thought it was a fucking joke I was in the back room, frozen like a coward Heard him begging, heard the bones get devoured That shame ate me alive for weeks on end Couldn't look at Jake, couldn't fucking pretend So I found Denise's gym, begged her to teach "I'll clean the whole place, just show me how to reach" [Verse 3 - The Training] [Garage punk energy, raw vocals] Every morning, five AM before my shift Learning how to move, how to strike, how to shift Denise says "Emma, you're small but you're fast Channel that fear, make the advantage last" Cleaning the gym for lessons I can't afford Bruises under my uniform, my little reward Other workers think I've gone fucking mental Practicing stances by the till, fundamental [Instrumental break] [Heavy guitar, building tension] [Verse 4 - Tonight's Different] [Slower, ominous, building dread] Eleven forty-seven, I see them outside Two girls looking desperate with nothing to hide Kelly and Birdie, though I don't know their names Just recognize the look, played this out in my brain Three weeks ago the corner shop got done Owner's still in hospital, the fuckers won My hands aren't shaking like I thought they would be Eighteen months of training, time to fucking see [Verse 5 - The Moment] [Explosive punk energy, all instruments] "Open up that fucking register now!" The scared girl would've folded, but somehow My body knows exactly what to do "Wrong store, wrong night, wrong FUCKING FIGHT, you two!" Crack my knuckles, everything goes slow Muscle memory taking over the show Kelly goes down in under three seconds flat Birdie's crying before she knows where she's at Every punch Denise taught me lands fucking clean Five minutes of being exactly who I've trained to be [Bridge - The Aftermath] [Quieter, emotional, folk-punk style] They're running out, I'm throwing up in the bin Not from fear but from what's happening within Call my mum sobbing "I did it, I stayed I didn't run, Mum, I wasn't afraid" She doesn't understand but she hears something new Her invisible daughter just fucking broke through [Instrumental] [Triumphant guitar solo] [Verse 6 - Overnight Hero] [Building to anthem, pop-punk energy] Morning comes with news vans at the door "TINY CLERK DESTROYS ROBBERS" - I'm the fucking score Reporters calling me brave and inspirational Mum's on breakfast TV, crying, sensational Job offers from security firms rolling in Free lifetime membership at Denise's gym Everyone wants to buy the hero a drink But I'm just a scared kid who didn't sink They need a hero story, something pure and bright Don't want to know I puke from fear each night But fuck it, I'll take it, I'll be what they need The shop girl who fought back, who made attackers bleed Never thought I'd be anybody special or seen Just wanted to survive my shift and stay clean Now I'm the hero on everyone's screen Still the same scared girl, aged nineteen [Final Chorus] [Anthemic, all instruments, gang vocals feel] Sometimes you train for the worst fucking case Sometimes you're ready when violence shows its face Not born a hero, just prepared to fight Made myself matter on one Tuesday night From invisible girl to the country's fucking pride All 'cause two desperate girls picked the wrong inside Hero's night shift, my moment of clarity Scared kids can win with proper fucking preparation, G [Outro] [Slowing down, returning to acoustic] Tomorrow I'm back at the till again But tonight I proved I'm more than what I've been Emma fucking Wilson, remember the name The tiny clerk who changed the fucking game [End] [Single guitar note, then silence]