[FX: fireworks popping • cicadas buzzing • car keys shaking • phone ringing • heartbeat racing • thunder far away] [DANIELLE] [Tone: nervous but dressed up] (Exhale) Blue flare pants, blue sleeves, hands shaking, Fourth of July and my stomach starts breaking. Keys in my grip, nerves in my throat, trying not to sink before I even float. [MARA] [Tone: smug • teasing] (Chuckles) Look at you, dressed like you’re brave tonight, but your body knows better, that fear’s airtight. You threw up before you even drove, girl, that’s not courage, that’s losing control. [DANIELLE] [Tone: defensive • sharp] (Hmph) No, that was anxiety running its mouth, but I still grabbed my keys and I still went out. Called my coworker, stayed on the line, panic was loud but I still chose mine. [MARA] [Tone: mocking] (Awwwww) Oh, how sweet, a babysitter call, needed backup just to not fall. What happens next when you meet the crowd? Parents and siblings, too damn loud. (Laughing) [DANIELLE] [Tone: stronger] What happened next? I walked through the fear. Best friend, girlfriend, family near. Nobody laughed, nobody stared, you made a monster that wasn’t there. [FX: fireworks crackle • crowd laughs • lighter flicks] [MARA] [Tone: irritated] (Bitch) Don’t get cozy, don’t get proud, one good welcome ain’t allowed. Maybe they smiled, maybe they lied, maybe they judged every move inside. [DANIELLE] [Tone: sarcastic] There she goes, moving the goal, missed your shot, now change the role. You said I’d break, you said I’d run, but I showed up and we had fun. [FX: fireworks boom • thunder rolling closer • rain starting • heartbeat steadying] [MARA] [Tone: desperate • louder] (Ughhhh) Fine, you went, but don’t relax, storms roll in and good things crack. Thunder came, the sky went black, that’s the universe warning you back. [DANIELLE] [Tone: laughing • powerful] No, that was weather, not a sign, not every storm is fate this time. We lit the fuse, watched colors climb, I stood there scared and still felt fine. (Kiss) [MARA] [Tone: bitter] Two short hours, then you left, tired and sick with shaking breath. That’s not winning, that’s retreat, barely standing on your feet. [DANIELLE] [Tone: barking back] (Nope) Wrong again, I knew my limit, showed up scared and still stayed in it. I went home tired, not ashamed, that’s called growth, not losing the game. [FX: car door opens • rain softens • distant fireworks] [MARA] [Tone: low • venomous] He’ll forget, he’ll drift, he’ll fade, you’ll regret the plans you made. One good night, then comes the fall, false alarms still warn you all. (Laugh) [DANIELLE] [Tone: triumphant] (Yeah) False alarm? Exactly, bitch. You pulled the wire, flipped the switch. Sirens screaming in my brain, but nothing burned, I beat the flame. He walked me out, he smiled too, said, “Come more often,” yeah, that’s true. You said rejection, I got proof, you’re not prophecy, you’re just noise in the roof. [FINAL CHORUS] [DANIELLE] [Tone: explosive • victorious] False alarm, Mara, you were wrong, I shook all day and still stayed strong. Blue clothes, sick stomach, thunder sky, but I still went, I still tried. False alarm, you lost tonight, fear threw hands but I won the fight. You said stay home, I said no, lit the fuse and watched me glow. [OUTRO] [FX: last firework • heartbeat calm • rain fades] [MARA] [Tone: quiet] I’ll find something else. [DANIELLE] [Tone: smiling] I know. But tonight? You lost.
