It's Always Been September

[Verse 1] The calendar’s curled on the wall again Still stuck on some old day I tried to change it once or twice But it wouldn’t look away There’s dust on the second pillow But I smooth it out at night Like making space for absence Might bring you back in spite [Chorus] Sweetheart, it’s always been September And the air won’t move along The trees hold onto every leaf Like they know something's wrong You left in that soft, unfinished way That silence tends to stay Now every dusk feels halfway lit And the clocks just misbehave [Verse 2] I hear the floorboard creak like footsteps But it’s never you, of course Just the echo of a feeling Taking shape and losing force The mirror by the staircase Won’t show me from the side I think it’s tired of pretending That I’m something I can’t hide [Chorus] Sweetheart, it’s always been September Even when the sun comes through There’s a haze that holds the windows Like the house remembers you I play that record you once broke Just to feel the crack again The needle skips like memory But never reaches when [Bridge] Maybe time did pass But it curled like smoke And all the days got caught On the words we never spoke [Outro] So if you ever drift back here Like a fog that knows my name I’ll be sitting by the window Just pretending nothing’s changed Sweetheart, it’s always been September And I think it always will The world just ends so quietly When you’re trying to sit still