Seven Years, Still Here

[Verse 1]
Found your hoodie in a box last night
Still smells like cherry spray and summer fights
Tiny shoes
Scribbled hearts on my old desk
You in my sweatshirt
Laughing at my bedhead mess
[Chorus]
Seven years
But it feels like yesterday
You were tugging on my sleeve
Wanting me to stay
Every time I blink
You're running down that hall
Bare feet
Wild hair
“big bro
Watch me fall”
Seven years
But the clock won’t tell me how
You lived so far away
Yet you’re here somehow
In every little corner of this house
My dear
Seven years gone
You’re still here
[Verse 2]
Mom still sets an extra plate sometimes
Pretends she doesn’t
Wipes her eyes and lies
Your name carved in the table
Right by mine
We trace those letters when we’re out of lines
[Chorus]
Seven years
But it feels like yesterday
You were tugging on my sleeve
Begging me to stay
Every time I blink
You’re dancing down that hall
Mismatched socks
Bad jokes
“big bro
Hear me call”
Seven years
But the calendar’s a blur now
The days stack up
But they all fall down
In every quiet moment you appear
My dear
Seven years gone
You’re still here
[Bridge]
I still keep your birthday on my phone (yeah)
Bake a cake too big for one alone
Talk out loud like you’re beside me in the car
Tell you how I’m trying
How you’d like my scars
[Chorus]
Seven years
But it feels like yesterday
You were jumping on my back
Begging me to stay
Every time I blink
I hear you in the hall
Soft voice
Bright eyes
“big bro
Don’t let me fall”
Seven years
And I still don’t know how
To say goodbye
So I won’t start now
You’re every single heartbeat that I hear
My dear
Seven years gone
You’re still here (still here)

Intimate acoustic ballad with male vocals; soft fingerpicked guitar and warm room reverb. First verse hushed and close, chorus widens with subtle piano pads and stacked harmonies. Second verse adds gentle percussion and low strings for lift. Bridge strips back to almost solo voice, then final chorus blooms with emotional ad-libs and a held, bittersweet ending., heartfelt