Maybe I should’ve left you on read,
Forgot your birthday, stayed out instead.
Maybe I should’ve made you chase my phone,
Acted like you were never my home.
Maybe I should’ve rolled my eyes,
Fed you half a dozen little lies.
Made you wonder where I’d been,
Maybe then I’d finally win.
[Pre-Chorus]
’Cause I brought loyalty, you called it “too much.”
I brought patience, you forgot my touch.
Funny how the good girl always pays,
While the chaos gets the bouquet.
[Chorus]
Maybe I should’ve treated you like shit,
Maybe that’s the secret, maybe that’s just it.
Should’ve made you cry, made you beg, made you wait,
Kept one foot outside every date.
Maybe I should’ve slammed every door,
Made you fight just to get one more.
If love was all you wanted to outrun,
Maybe I should’ve been the one
Who broke your heart before it could start.
Maybe then… you would’ve loved me hard.
[Verse 2]
She cheated, disappeared for days,
Talked to other guys without a second glance.
Picked fights, cut you down to size,
Never cared how many times you cried.
She took your money, spent your trust,
Left you sweeping up the dust.
Talked rough to people in your life,
Still somehow stayed the prize.
[Pre-Chorus]
I kept showing up, you kept pulling back.
Guess respect just wasn’t what you lacked.
I gave you peace, you chased the storm.
Guess healthy never felt like home.
[Chorus]
Maybe I should’ve treated you like shit,
Maybe that’s the secret, maybe that’s just it.
Should’ve made you earn every little kiss,
Turned love into a game to miss.
Maybe kindness wasn’t what you knew,
Maybe that’s why I kept losing you.
If heartbreak was the only spark,
Maybe I should’ve played that part.
[Bridge]
But I know that isn’t really me.
Love shouldn’t need misery.
If someone has to tear you down
Just to make you stick around…
Then maybe I didn’t lose the prize.
Maybe I just opened my eyes.
[Final Chorus]
Maybe I should’ve treated you like shit…
Yeah, that’s the joke, but here’s the twist.
I’d rather lose than become that girl,
Just to be your whole damn world.
So keep chasing fires that burn too bright,
I’ll keep choosing wrong over losing my light.
If loving me was never enough,
Then maybe the problem… wasn’t love.
