Still at the Bar

[Verse 1 – Male]
Still at the bar
Neon's low, but we’re stayin'
You swirl that drink
Say, "Go on, keep explainin'"
I laugh too soft
Tell you how she walked away
How I still check that old house key
Like she might come back someday
[Verse 1 – Female]
You draw shapes
In the water on the table
Every curve
Is a piece of your old fable
You say "it’s fine"
But your jaw says that it’s not
I can feel that ghost between us
Taking up the empty spot
[Chorus – Both]
I’m still at the bar with a beautiful stranger
Heart still limpin' from a long-gone danger
You listen like the hurt got a place to land
You don't flinch when I say
"I ain’t alright yet"
You just reach across the space, let our fingers connect
And it feels like maybe someday I can stand
Yeah, I’m still at the bar
But I’m holdin' your hand
[Verse 2 – Male rap]
Yeah
I said, "She left in the fall, brown boots by the door
Took the dog, took the truck, took my faith in 'for sure'"
Been drinkin' this town dry, tryna blur out her name
Every stool, every song, every face look the same
But you
Laugh at my worst line, roll your eyes, still you stay
Call me out on my self-pity and the games that I play
You say, "Boy, that kind of break can bend you clean in two
But the part that’s still in pieces ain’t the only part of you"
[Verse 2 – Female rap]
Look
I ain’t perfect either, I got boxes in my car
Full of plans that got postponed and a ring in a jar
Had a man who said forever, then he vanished in June
Now I’m learnin' how to dance in an empty room
So when you
Talk about her picture still facedown on your phone
I ain’t judgin' you for grieving what you thought was your home
We both sittin' with our losses in this worn-out booth
But I see more than your story, I see somebody true
[Pre-Chorus – Both]
Two hurt hearts
On a Tuesday night
Same old bar
But the air feels light
'Cause you look at me
Like I ain’t damaged goods
Like I’m someone
Who could still turn out good
[Chorus – Both]
I’m still at the bar with a beautiful stranger
Heart still limpin' from a long-gone danger
You listen like the hurt got a place to land
You don't flinch when I say
"I ain’t alright yet"
You just reach across the space, let our fingers connect
And it feels like maybe someday I can stand
Yeah, I’m still at the bar
But I’m holdin' your hand
[Bridge – Female + Male, call & response]
[Female] You say love is somethin' that you just don't trust
[Male] But you’re the first in a while that ain’t askin' for much
[Female] Just your truth in the quiet, in the cheap bar light
[Male] Just your face when you smile sayin', "We’ll be alright"
[Both, low vocal register] Maybe this ain't forever
Maybe this is just tonight
But there’s somethin' in this moment
That’s survivin' all the nights
[Chorus – Both]
[Chorus]
[Outro – Both, soft]
Still at the bar
But I’m not stuck in the past
Your head on my shoulder
And the hurt fades fast
If this is just one night
Or the start of a plan
Either way I’m still broken
But I’m holdin' your hand

rap, Moody modern country-rap duet: fingerpicked acoustic and warm pedal steel over a deep, swinging groove; rap verses trade between male and female, then both sing the hook in tight harmony. Sub bass and trap hats slide in on verses, chorus opens wider with big stacked vocals and organ pads. Energy arcs from confessional and heavy to hopeful and lifted by the final chorus. Male + female vocals., slow, country, sad, beautiful