[Verse 1] Left at the corner, right at the stain, Past the dead light that flickers again. Count every doorway, one through ten- Lose where you started, then start again. I heard something breathing behind the walls, A kettle singing through empty halls. I followed the sound, but when I came near, There was only yellow and nobody here. [Pre-Chorus] Domů, domů, soft and low, Someone hums where I cannot go. Bientôt, bientôt, just one more door- Haven’t I walked past this place before? [Chorus] Almost hôme, but not tonight, Keep your shoes beside the light. Eat your fill and rest your bones, But don’t teach these walls your name. Almost hôme, not yours to keep, Borrow warmth and borrow sleep. When the hallway calls you, go- Almost Home is not your home. [Verse 2] I sat where the carpet was cold and wet, Trying to picture what I might forget. The shape of a window, the turn of a key, The voice of somebody waiting for me. Then under my hands, the floor became dry. The buzzing grew gentle. The ceiling grew high. A lamp lit itself with a warm amber glow, And doors started growing wherever I’d go. [Pre-Chorus] À la maison, the wallpaper sighed. Zpátky domů, something replied. Every word meant the same thing, and yet None held the home I was trying to get. [Chorus] Almost hôme, but not tonight, Keep your shoes beside the light. Take the blanket, take the bread, But never choose yourself a bed. Almost hôme, not yours to keep, Borrow warmth and borrow sleep. When the hallway calls you, go- Almost Home is not your home. [Verse 3] A table appeared with a place set for one. Curtains were drawn though there wasn’t a sun. Photographs smiled with faces half-known, Like memories borrowed from somebody’s home. The keys at my waist began softly to sing. One by one, they grew from each fingertip. I touched the blank wall and it opened for me- A hundred safe rooms where no rooms should be. [Bridge] My hair rose around me like weeds in a stream. Pink filled my eyes at the edge of the dream. My shadow grew longer, my footsteps grew slow, And somehow the halls knew wherever I’d go. I asked them for shelter. They built me a town. I asked for a doorway. They would not lead out. So I made them a promise: “No lost soul will die. I’ll give them a fire, A meal, and a night. But this is a station, A pause, not an end. I’ll keep you from monsters- Not comfort, my friend.” [Verse 4] Now travellers find me when hope has worn thin, With dust on their clothes and the dark closing in. I open the door and I welcome them through: “There’s water and supper. A warm room for you.” “You’re safe here, I swear it. No creature may roam. But listen quite closely: this place is not home. Do not hang your pictures. Don’t unpack your things. Don’t answer at night when the little bell rings.” [Pre-Chorus] Doma, chez toi, zuhause, en casa- The level will whisper whatever you ask. It studies your heart and it learns what you miss, Then offers a copy too gentle to resist. [Chorus] Almost hôme, but not tonight, Keep your shoes beside the light. Eat your fill and rest your bones, But don’t teach these walls your name. Almost hôme, not yours to keep, Borrow warmth and borrow sleep. When the hallway calls you, go- Almost Home is not your home. [Breakdown / Spoken softly] You may sleep here. You may eat. Nothing in these rooms will hurt you. But do not unpack. Do not choose a room. Do not start calling it home. Because it listens. And it wants to be enough. [Final Chorus] Almost hôme, the doorway’s near, Take what you need, but leave your fear. Hold your name and hold it close- That is what the hallway wants the most. Almost hôme, so when you wake, Leave before the pictures change. When the true door starts to glow, Take my hand- Then let me go. Almost hôme, the lights are low. You have rested. You must go. I will stay and keep them warm- Almost Home is not your home. [Outro] Domů, domů, down the hall… Don’t look back when you hear me call. Bientôt, bientôt, off you roam… You’re almost- Almost- Home.
