When The Lights Come Up

[Intro – 0:00–0:18]

(Soft piano, filtered vox)
I don’t miss the party
I miss who I was before

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[Verse 1 – 0:18–0:48]

We were golden under neon signs
Every night felt permanent
Said we’d deal with real life later
Like it wasn’t relevant

I memorized the way you laughed
Like it was something I could keep
But the lights don’t lie for long
They show you what you couldn’t see

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[Pre-Chorus – 0:48–1:05]

I can fake it in the dark
But the truth hits hard
When the moment’s gone

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[DROP / Chorus – 1:05–1:35]

💥 It only hurts when the lights come up 💥
When the crowd clears out and I’m still stuck
Holding onto a version of us
That never made it past tonight

It only hurts when the lights come up
When I can’t pretend that I’m in love
With the mess I’m trying to become
After you, after us

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[Post-Drop – 1:35–1:50]

(Oh-oh)
After us
(Oh-oh)

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[Verse 2 – 1:50–2:15]

I don’t hate you, I hate the gap
Between who we were and this
Every “what if” feels heavier
Than the truth we never said

You moved on like it was nothing
I stayed learning how to breathe
Funny how the quiet parts
Are the loudest thing to me

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[Pre-Chorus 2 – 2:15–2:30]

I can drown it out with motion
But it waits for me at dawn

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[DROP / Chorus 2 – 2:30–3:00]

🔥 It only hurts when the lights come up 🔥
When the night lets go of us
Every high we couldn’t save
Falls apart in the morning

It only hurts when the lights come up
I don’t miss the rush, I miss the trust
I miss believing we were enough
To survive the sun

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[Bridge – 3:00–3:20]

(Half-time, stripped)
Maybe love was never meant
To last past the moment
But I’d still do it all again
Just to feel it open

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[FINAL DROP – 3:20–3:45]

⚡ It only hurts when the lights come up ⚡
But I’m learning how to stand up
If this pain’s the price of love
I’ll pay it slow, I’ll pay it honest

It only hurts when the lights come up
And tomorrow’s gonna come
But tonight I let it burn
One last time

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[Outro – 3:45–3:55]

(Piano fade)
Some nights end
Some stay with you

Melodic future bass / after-the-show heartbreak / hopeful pain, male voice