They called it strength I called it survival They called me a hero Since I sacrificed all I had in me, They continued to use me Till I stopped bleeding for free You wanna know what a backbone costs? Listen Hah Listen well I built my spine from every knife They left between my ribs Turned betrayal into armor Now I’m bulletproof to guilt and shame You shook my hand Then counted every scar on each wrist Like trophies on your shelf shining with each glow You never wanted me to heal You had me sat with a deal Devil in disguise, Hell sitting over me You just needed someone else Terrorize at your expense I was your bridge across the ocean, Your lifeboat in the flood Now you’re mad I learned right from wrong My own blood’s worth more than your love You called me family While my pockets held your problems The second I drew boundaries You painted me the problem Go ahead Talk behind my back That’s the closest You’ll ever get to leading me You fed on my silence Ate off my plate Mistook my mercy For weakness. And now you’re starving Because I finally learned the difference. This is the price (The price) The price of a backbone Standing tall When your knees wanna fold Speaking truth When the room wants lies Walking forward With a war in your eyes I don’t bend I don’t fold I don’t break I became the storm You thought I’d run from Everybody wanted my shoulders Nobody wanted my story Everybody loved my sacrifice Nobody stayed for my recovery You wanted loyalty. What you really wanted Was unlimited access. Was that what you wanted? Sat at my table to use me? Talk high and pretend you were here for me? A heartbeat with no boundaries? Now I’m a heartbeat with boundaries An open door You never had to knock on You rented my kindness Like it came with no expiration Now the lease is over Pay what’s owed I’m done financing Other people’s comfort With my own peace Look at me now Every scar Is a signature of wars I won on my own. Without you and now you wanna twist things so I’m the bad guy in your story Every failure A blueprint Every sleepless night Another brick In a foundation You could never shake My DNA won’t carry surrender It carries survivors I learned how to become a fighter Because every war taught me to stand tall or not at all! Every wound Taught another lesson Every betrayal Forged another weapon You thought pain Would make me disappear Instead… It introduced you To the version of me That doesn’t ask permission. I’m not chaos. I’m consequence Everything you buried Came back standing Everything you doubted Found a voice Everything you tried to silence Built an empire Inside my chest This is the price Of carrying worlds That were never yours This is the cost Of standing When life keeps swinging Call me stubborn Call me cold Call me whatever Helps you sleep Just don’t mistake My peace For permission To use me agai The strongest people Aren’t born that way They’re carved By loss By fire By disappointment By nights Nobody ever saw So if you see me standing Know this You didn’t make me You tried to break me You didn’t try for me You didn’t care about me And that’s exactly Why I refuse to fall BlackBandit
