Whatever Forever (The 90s)

[Verse 1]
Cracked sink, cheap light, the hum that never quits,
They say I’m lucky — like that settles it.
I learn the lines, I wear the little roles,
Nights full of white noise and unpaid bills and holes.

[Pre-Chorus]
I’ve put on what you want, learned how to stay,
Not from courage — just the habit of the day.

[Chorus]
I’m still here — not because I’m brave,
Not because I chose a better way.
I’m still here — I’m just too damn tired to fade,
Because I don’t know how to go away.

[Verse 2]
Coffee gone cold on the passenger seat,
Same old street light, same old ache in my feet.
No banner, no loud speech, no clean goodbye,
Just another morning where the sun gets by.

[Pre-Chorus]
You thought I’d break, expected some big fall,
But mostly I keep moving — that’s all.

[Chorus]
I’m still here — not because I’m brave,
Not because I chose a better way.
I’m still here — I’m just too damn tired to fade,
Because I don’t know how to go away.

[Bridge]
Callused hands, small chores, the names I still use,
I keep the pace because I’ve nothing else to lose.
No triumph in the walking, no glory in the stay,
Just motion that outlasts the plans they made.

[Final Chorus — pared back]
I’m still here — not brave, not chosen, plain,
I’m still here — I’m just too damn tired to fade.
I’m still here — nothing sacred, nothing grand,
I’m still here — because I can.


Still Here

[Verse 1]
You said it’s fine, just close my eyes,
Paint over cracks with borrowed lines.
I wore that mask until it bled,
Told myself I was better fed.

[Pre-Chorus]
But the mirror won’t play along,
It keeps repeating what I’ve done wrong.

[Chorus]
The easy lie — it almost saved me,
Soft as a whisper, sharp as a blade.
The easy lie — it almost changed me,
But truth is the weight I never evade.

[Verse 2]
Empty rooms, a rehearsed reply,
Every smile breaks when it’s pressed too tight.
I reached for comfort, caught the seams,
Woke up choking on borrowed dreams.

[Pre-Chorus]
And every promise fades in the light,
But I still bite down like it tastes right.

[Chorus]
The easy lie — it almost saved me,
Soft as a whisper, sharp as a blade.
The easy lie — it almost changed me,
But truth is the weight I never evade.

[Bridge]
Better to hurt than to live asleep,
Better the cut than the hollow cheap.
Still I reach, still I try,
Still I swallow the easy lie.

[Final Chorus — lift it bigger]
The easy lie — it almost saved me,
Carved in the silence, sung in my veins.
The easy lie — it almost changed me,
But all that’s left is the ache that remains.



The Easy Lie


[Verse 1]
You raised your voice, I raised mine too,
Sharp words flying in a crowded room.
The silence after, I replay in my head,
All I think about is what I should’ve said.

[Pre-Chorus]
Looking back, I should have known,
Silence speaks enough alone.
What I should have said… was nothing.

[Chorus]
But I filled the air with careless lines,
Lit the fuse and watched it unwind.
Every word was a nail instead,
And nothing is what I should’ve said.

[Verse 2]
I tried too hard to win the fight,
Lost your trust somewhere that night.
The echoes linger, they paint me red,
Reminding me of what I should’ve said.

[Pre-Chorus]
Looking back, I should have known,
Silence speaks enough alone.
What I should have said… was nothing.

[Chorus]
But I filled the air with careless lines,
Lit the fuse and watched it unwind.
Every word was a nail instead,
And nothing is what I should’ve said.

[Verse 3] (Fallout)
Cold walls, long drive, I replay it all,
Apologies scribbled, but they never call.
Your face in the window, my heart misread,
Drowning again in what I should’ve said.

[Bridge] (Relief / banter)
After the fight, I just wanted it right,
Didn’t deserve a chance that night.
But later you laughed, rolled your eyes instead,
“Lucky you’re cute, you big dork,” you said.

[Final Chorus]
I filled the air with careless lines,
Lit the fuse and watched it unwind.
But you gave me a smile instead —
Now maybe I’ll never think again
About what I should’ve said.



What I Should Have Said

[Verse 1]
Radio hums through a cracked screen door,
Your mother’s picture on the hall closet floor.
You say the town never learns a new name,
I say the same things, we keep the same frame.

[Pre-Chorus]
We trade tomorrow for a diner seat,
We keep the corners neat we never meet.

[Chorus]
You left the porch light on again,
Like you think I’ll ever find my way.
I sit on the step and count the dents,
Of the life that won’t let me change.
You left the porch light on again —
It’s dim, but it’s the only flame.

[Verse 2]
Coffee stains in chipped blue mugs,
The neighbor’s laugh from the cracked-up rug.
We tell small lies to keep the night thin,
Pretend the horizon’s not closing in.

[Pre-Chorus]
We say we’ll leave but never pack,
We pace the floors, then fall right back.

[Chorus]
You left the porch light on again,
Like you think I’ll ever find my way.
I sit on the step and count the dents,
Of the life that won’t let me change.
You left the porch light on again —
It’s dim, but it’s the only flame.

[Bridge] (lean in; grit)
There’s comfort in the small things left undone,
A lazy mercy in the setting sun.
I don’t leave because leaving looks like work,
And I’m too tired to be somebody else’s hurt.

[Final Chorus — lift, but not clean]
You left the porch light on again,
I walk up slow, I close the door.
Keep your sameness like a pocketstone,
It’s heavy and I keep it on.
You left the porch light on again —
I’ll stand in its half-broken glow.


Left The Porch Light On

[Verse 1]
You said “don’t make a scene” while you tore through me,
Like silence is safety, like quiet sets me free.
I wore my teeth down on the words I never let fall,
But they cut me sharper for staying in at all.

[Pre-Chorus]
You call it patience, I call it chains,
You call it love, I call it pain.

[Chorus]
I bite my tongue ‘til it bleeds me dry,
Swallow the hurt, pretend I’m fine.
But the truth burns louder than I can hide,
And it kills me every time.
I bite my tongue — but it bites back twice.

[Verse 2]
You said “don’t talk back” while you carved your lines,
Like my questions were poison, like my doubts were crimes.
I swallowed fire just to keep the peace,
But it only grew hotter, never found release.

[Pre-Chorus]
You call it strength, I call it fear,
You call it closeness, I’m not near.

[Chorus]
I bite my tongue ‘til it bleeds me dry,
Swallow the hurt, pretend I’m fine.
But the truth burns louder than I can hide,
And it kills me every time.
I bite my tongue — but it bites back twice.

[Bridge]
Every word I didn’t say built a wall that keeps me small,
Every scream I held away still echoes down the hall.
And I’m done being silent, I’m done playing nice —
If I bite my tongue again, I’ll never taste my life.

[Final Chorus]
I bite my tongue ‘til it bleeds me dry,
Swallow the hurt, pretend I’m fine.
But the truth burns louder than I can hide,
And it kills me every time.
I bite my tongue — but not tonight.


Bite My Tongue

I'm not a musician.  But I feel the music that I cannot create. I write the lyrics from scenes in my short stories. plays, novellas, and novels as "emotional scaffolding". And even then, I don't consider myself a writer, but a storyteller.

If you think my songs aren't commercial grade, you're probably right. 

But if you enjoyed any of them, that makes me happy. 

The Easy Lie

Jeremy Brown