[Verse 1]
I wish life came with a warning label
Stuck somewhere obvious
Black letters on a yellow background
Big enough for all of us
Warning:
Plans may change without permission
Warning:
People leave for reasons unexplained
Warning:
You will outgrow places
You swore would never change
I would’ve read it carefully
[Pre-Chorus]
Maybe then
I would’ve known
What I was walking into
[Chorus]
I should’ve read the small print
The bits they hide away
Nobody mentioned losing people
Nobody mentioned change
Nobody said some memories
Would follow me for years
I should’ve read the small print
Before I got here
[Verse 2]
I wish life came with instructions
A handbook in the box
A page explaining why the nights
Can hit harder than the clocks
Why some names stay in your chest
Long after they should fade
Why healing isn’t climbing upwards
Just circles getting wider
Until one day
The pain fits differently
[Pre-Chorus]
Nobody warned me
That survival
Could feel so ordinary
[Chorus]
I should’ve read the small print
The bits they hide away
Nobody mentioned growing older
Would happen in a day
One minute you’re somebody’s child
The next you’re terrified
I should’ve read the small print
Before this ride
[Bridge]
Side effects may include:
Missing people
Missing futures
Missing versions of yourself
Unexpected tears in supermarket aisles
Checking your phone
At two in the morning
Wondering if everybody else
Received different instructions
Known issues include:
Fear
Hope
Attachment
Grief
And carrying on anyway
[Instrumental]
[Final Chorus]
I should’ve read the small print
The terms and guarantees
Nobody said I’d spend so long
Trying to figure out me
Nobody said the hardest part
Wouldn’t be staying alive
It would be learning
How to live
After surviving
I should’ve read the small print
But maybe no one did
Maybe we’re all just opening the box
And hoping
The missing pages aren’t important
[Outro]
Warning:
You will become someone
You don’t recognise at first
Warning:
Some days will be beautiful
For absolutely no reason
Warning:
This product is fragile
Handle with care