Mean Notes In My Locker

[Verse 1]
You flick your eyes across the room
Sharp little laughs with all your friends
My name folded in your mouth
Like something bitter you pretend
You shove your gossip in my locker
Crushed-up paper
Crooked words
I read them shaking in the bathroom
Till all the letters start to blur
[Chorus]
Why do you hate me so loud
When I'm already breaking inside
You throw stones at the cracks in my mind
Watch me splinter
Act surprised
If you could feel this storm in my head
Would you still push just to see me fall
I'm barely holding on to myself
And you keep tearing at what's left of it all
[Verse 2]
You roll your eyes when I go quiet
Say I'm “dramatic
” say I'm “weird”
You turn my silence into a joke
So you don't have to see my fear
You post a picture
Write a caption
Twist my pain into a game
I lie awake and count the comments
Every one sounds like my name
[Chorus]
Why do you hate me so loud
When I'm already breaking inside
You throw stones at the cracks in my mind
Watch me splinter
Act surprised
If you could feel this storm in my head
Would you still push just to see me fall
I'm barely holding on to myself
And you keep tearing at what's left of it all
[Bridge]
Do you see me shake
When you walk by my desk
Do you hear that voice
Telling me I'm less
Than every lie you spread around
I start to think they might be true
I'm tired
I'm tired
I'm so damn tired
Of drowning in the version you drew
[Chorus]
Why do you hate me so loud
When I'm already breaking inside
You throw stones at the cracks in my mind
Then laugh when all the pieces slide
If you could feel this storm in my head
Would you still push or would you finally stall
I'm barely holding on to myself
And you keep tearing at what's left of it all

Moody alt-pop ballad over soft electric piano and deep, round bass. Intimate female vocals up front, close-mic’d, with distant reverb on certain words to feel isolated. Verses stay sparse, just keys and subtle pads; chorus brings in steady drums, doubled lead lines, and breathy harmonies on key phrases. Final chorus strips back to almost a whisper, then swells once more for a raw, aching outro.