Shadows Don’t Talk

[Verse 1]
Steady breath
steady hands on the table
You see “chill”
you don’t see unstable
I nod along
eyes parked on the cable
’cause if they meet yours
I might turn to a fable
Little jokes
just to loosen the room
Cracked grin
over concrete gloom
I’m the one saying
“it’ll pass real soon”
while my own dark thoughts
orbit like a moon
You praise my calm
like it’s some kind of gift
Like I ain’t holding back
a continental shift
Like my chest ain’t built
on a fault line rift
Whole world on mute
’til the mask might slip
[Chorus]
You don’t hear it
shadows don’t talk
Pain walks quiet
right under your watch
I look fine
but I’m fighting this storm
I stay composed
while my heart deforms
I keep it buried
deep in my bones
Smile on my face
but I’m sinking alone
You don’t hear it
’cause shadows don’t scream
I bleed in silence
behind the scene
[Verse 2]
Ask “you good?”
I say “yeah, I’m straight”
Short word answer
slam shut the gate
Truth tastes bitter
on a tongue this trained
to flip every breakdown
into something explained
I’m the strong friend
you lean on, right?
The late-night call
the borrowed light
I hand you calm
’til my own runs dry
then fold my needs
into “never mind”
There’s a war in my head
full metal and fumes
but my voice walks soft
like socks in a room
Trauma in a trench coat
blending in the crowd
Whole life’s quiet
but my thoughts too loud
[Chorus]
You don’t hear it
shadows don’t talk
Pain walks quiet
right under your watch
I look fine
but I’m fighting this storm
I stay composed
while my heart deforms
I keep it buried
deep in my bones
Smile on my face
but I’m sinking alone
You don’t hear it
’cause shadows don’t scream
I bleed in silence
behind the scene
[Bridge]
If I said “I’m scared”
would the world lean in?
If my calm collapsed
would you call that sin?
Or would you see a soul
not a perfect skin
a fragile truth
not a flawless win
[Chorus]
You don’t hear it
shadows don’t talk
Pain walks quiet
right under your watch
I look fine
but I’m fighting this storm
I stay composed
while my heart deforms
I keep it buried
deep in my bones
Smile on my face
but I’m sinking alone
You don’t hear it
’cause shadows don’t scream
I bleed in silence
behind the scene

rap, Slow-burn cinematic rap over sparse piano and distant sub-bass pulses, male vocals. Verses are close-mic, almost whispered, with subtle string swells under key lines. Hook widens with layered low harmonies and a tight, dry kick. Occasional reversed-texture risers and filtered breaths heighten the tension, ending on a muted, unresolved chord., moody