Paper Men

[Verse 1]
He brings me coffee on page nine
Says the right thing every time
Dog-eared corner
Midnight light
I fall again
Same scene
Same line
[Chorus]
I’m in love with paper men
Ink-stained hearts I meet at ten
They never leave
They never fade
I close the book
They always stay
I’m in love with paper men
Turn the page and breathe them in
Real hands touch
Then slip away
But in my books
They always stay
[Verse 2]
There’s one who storms the castle gate
One who’s late but still I wait
They break and heal in black and white
I learn their scars by Friday night
[Chorus]
I’m in love with paper men
Ink-stained hearts I meet at ten
They never leave
They never fade
I close the book
They always stay
I’m in love with paper men
Turn the page and breathe them in
Real hands touch
Then slip away
But in my books
They always stay
[Bridge]
Maybe I’m afraid to be
More than someone’s passing dream
So I let fiction hold me tight (hold me tight)
Safe in someone else’s fight
[Chorus]
I’m in love with paper men
Ink-stained hearts I meet at ten
They never leave
They never fade
I close the book
They always stay
I’m in love with paper men
Folded corners
Breaking spine again
If I get hurt
It’s just a page
And in my books
They always stay

Indie-pop ballad with intimate female vocals, close-mic'd acoustic guitar, soft piano, and subtle brushed drums. Verse stays delicate and confessional; chorus widens with stacked harmonies and warm bass, then drops back to a hush for the bridge. Gentle reverb, storytelling front and center, with a late-song lift in emotion rather than volume.