[Intro – distant reverse piano, low warm synth, soft room tone; female vocal almost whispered]
Kira…
Stay here.
Stay near.
[Verse 1 – intimate close-mic female vocal; clipped bass pulse, sparse brittle percussion]
Half-brown face in the doorway light
Golden brown eyes catching the edge of night
A little white heart in your ear
Like you were marked to find me here
Thirteen winters in your fur
Every room feels less unsure
You follow close, you never ask
My loyal shadow in the dark
[Pre-Chorus – suspended piano chords rise; breathy backing harmonies enter]
I hear your paws across the tile
Soft snow falling all the while
You don’t need words to make it clear
You find me when the dark gets near
[Chorus – wide aching alt-pop lift; stacked female doubles, gang echo on parentheticals]
Kira, stay here
(Stay here)
Kira, stay near
(Stay near)
White heart, bright spark
In the dark
Kira, stay here
(Stay here)
Kira, stay near
(Stay near)
When I was losing my way
You would not disappear
[Verse 2 – beat returns harder; vocal calm but stronger, add subtle distorted guitar texture]
You shed on every black shirt I own
White little storms that say I’m home
On the couch and the passenger seat
On the days I could barely breathe
You never tried to fix the pain
Just pressed your weight against my leg
And somehow in that quiet proof
The broken parts came back to root
[Pre-Chorus – percussion drops out; reverse-piano swell and held vocal note]
I hear your paws across the tile
Soft snow falling all the while
The world can shake, the lights can dim
You stay until I find myself again
[Chorus – bigger drums and bass; layered harmony expands after each echoed phrase]
Kira, stay here
(Stay here)
Kira, stay near
(Stay near)
White heart, bright spark
In the dark
Kira, stay here
(Stay here)
Kira, stay near
(Stay near)
When I was losing my way
You would not disappear
[Bridge – strip to piano and airy pad; vulnerable lead, vocal crack allowed]
If the house goes quiet
If my name turns thin
You find me in the silence
And let the light back in
Half-brown face beside me
A heart where no one sees
You never had to save me
You just stayed close to me
[Final Chorus – fullest arrangement; soaring female lead, octave harmony and soft gang echoes]
Kira, stay here
(Stay here)
Kira, stay near
(Stay near)
White heart, bright spark
In the dark
Kira, stay here
(Stay here)
Kira, stay near
(Stay near)
Through every hard and heavy year
You were always here
[Outro – beat dissolves; piano and breathy stacked vocal fade]
Kira…
Stay here.
Stay near.