Verse 1]
We were weeks from opening the doors
White coats waiting, lights still cold
Then sirens filled the silence
And the future never showed
I left work early one afternoon
Train rocking like it knew
Stopped for allergy medicine
Found the shelves stripped through
I called your mom from aisle three
Voice lower than the floor
They were pitching tents in Central Park
Talking ’bout closing doors
That’s when fear stopped whispering
And finally said my name
[Pre-Chorus]
The city held its breath that night
And didn’t breathe again
[Chorus]
When New York started looking empty
When the noise finally went quiet
I knew this wasn’t just a season
This was the end of a life
Not the skyline, not the streets
But who we were inside
I didn’t know where we were going
I just knew it was time
[Verse 2]
Our favorite places boarded up
Friends already gone
The busiest city in the world
Forgot its song
I packed my career into silence
Folded dreams with my clothes
All I had was what I’d saved
And a fear I couldn’t outgrow
I didn’t know if work would wait
Or if the city would remember me
Just knew staying wasn’t living
And leaving was honesty
[Pre-Chorus]
We chose what fit in our hands
And let the rest fall back
[Chorus]
When New York started looking empty
And the trains stopped feeling safe
I left behind the life I loved
For a question mark and faith
Not the chances, not the climb
But the version of us there
We weren’t running toward an answer
We were choosing care
[Bridge]
We took our clothes, the food we had
The cat, the dog, that’s all
Everything we couldn’t carry
Didn’t matter at all
I didn’t save the job or the plan
I saved the people who said my name
[Break – instrumental pause]
[Final Chorus]
So if loving you meant leaving
Every street that made me strong
I’d walk away from every dream
If it meant we carried on
I didn’t choose the safer future
I chose what felt true
I left the city that made us comfortable
For the family that made us you
[Outro]
The train disappeared behind us
As Connecticut came into view
I didn’t know what we were building
Just knew I was choosing you
JLWatkins
