Intermission

(Sound of ice cubes clinking loudly in a cheap glass. A heavy vinyl record scratch abruptly cuts off a radio announcer, dropping into a slow, dusty, thumping hip-hop kick drum).

Hey... turn that down a bit.

Everything’s just... bleeding together today.

Welcome to M-M-MISSY LAND.

Just breathe.

AC's been dead since Tuesday morning,

I’m just watching the ceiling fan spin in circles.

Can't tell if I’m sweating or the house is crying,

Stuck to the linoleum, losing all my focus.

Phone’s too hot to hold against my face,

Just staring at a blank screen, running out of space.

Gravity’s pulling a little too hard today,

Watching my thoughts just drift away.

The air is thick, the pressure’s high,

Too tired to fight, too tired to try...

(The snare drum begins to roll, triplets speeding up as the sound filters out into a haze).

And I'm melting away... under this June sun,

Just a sticky, heavy mess when the day is done.

Lost my edge, yeah, I lost my drive,

Just trying to do more than merely survive.

So let it drip, let it run, let it go,

Ain't got the energy to put on a show.

Three missed calls buzzing on the nightstand,

But my hands feel like they're made of lead.

The clock keeps ticking but the room is frozen,

Living on ice water and words unsaid.

Dust mites dancing in a beam of light,

Giving up on making it outside tonight.

Gravity’s pulling a little too hard today,

Watching my thoughts just drift away.

The air is thick, the pressure’s high,

Too tired to fight, too tired to try...

(The snare drum begins to roll, triplets speeding up as the sound filters out into a haze).

(The drums drop into a heavily sidechained, wavy lo-fi synth groove. A raw, slightly out-of-tune jazz guitar plucks a lazy, melancholic melody over thick vinyl hiss and the distant hum of traffic)

(The drums cut out completely. The vocals sound exhausted, close to the microphone, like a late-night voice note)

Solid to liquid...

Don't wait up for me...

I'm already gone.

(A deep, unscripted sigh, followed by the sharp click of a tape machine stopping).

Melted away... under this June sun,

Just a sticky, heavy mess when the day is done.

Lost my edge, yeah, I lost my drive,

Just trying to do more than merely survive.

So let it drip, let it run, let it go,

Ain't got the energy to put on a show.

(The tempo drags, pulling down to a sluggish crawl as the instruments start to detune).

Slipping...Right through...The floorboards...

I'm done.

(The track ends abruptly with the raw, acoustic click of a room light switch turning off, leaving total silence).