[Verse 1] You asked me once, before it started If I would know when you were gone Not when your breathing stopped beside me But when the thing inside had won You made me promise I would see it Past your eyes, beneath your skin And if you ever stopped resisting I would not let it settle in [Pre-Chorus] You put the promise in my hands Like something holy, something damned [Chorus] There is a violence called mercy There is a kindness with a blade There are promises that hurt you More the longer they're delayed If the day comes when you lose yourself And only I can tell I will love you past forgiveness I will love you through the hell If mercy has to hurt you Then let it hurt me as well [Verse 2] Some nights you wake up tasting iron Some mornings you won't meet my eyes You say the hunger's getting quieter I hear the hunger learning lies You laugh the same, you touch me gently You still remember every scar But sometimes when you think I'm sleeping I don't recognize who you are [Pre-Chorus] And every night I move the line Between what's yours and what isn't inside [Chorus] There is a violence called mercy There is a kindness with a blade There are promises that hurt you More the longer they're delayed If the day comes when you lose yourself And only I can tell I will love you past forgiveness I will love you through the hell If mercy has to hurt you Then let it hurt me as well [Verse 3] Tonight you asked me not to touch you Then pulled me closer when I moved Said, “Tell me I'm still here inside this” Like I was something you could prove I said your name until you answered You said mine like it caused you pain And for a moment I believed you Then watched your smile arrive too late [Bridge] How do I know when you are gone? Who gets to draw that line? How much of you can disappear Before what's left isn't mine? And what if underneath the hunger Under every changing part You are still there, still begging me Not to mistake the dark? What if I call it mercy Because I cannot call it fear? What if I keep my promise— And kill the reason you were here? [Final Chorus] There is a violence called mercy But mercy doesn't make it clean Love can put the weapon in your hand It cannot tell you what it means If the day comes when you lose yourself I pray I'll know you well Enough to see what's still worth saving Enough to know when there's nothing left And if mercy has to hurt you If I become the wound myself I will carry what I chose to do And never call it anything else [Outro] So stay with me Stay with me Make a liar of my fear Stay with me So I never have to learn What mercy means from here
