The Man You Needed

I was twenty-three with an ego bigger than my bank account
Thought I had all the time in the world to figure out
How to be the man you were already seeing in me
But I was too blind, too proud, too young to believe
That a woman like you wouldn't wait forever
For a boy to become what you deserved

You told me with your eyes before you told me with your words
That something in you was slowly dying every time
I chose my friends over dinner plans we made
Every time I made you feel like second place
You were screaming and I heard nothing but silence
Because I wasn't listening with the right parts of me

Now I'm thirty-one and I finally understand
What you meant when you said love is not enough
It takes presence, it takes showing up, it takes sacrifice
It takes putting someone else before your pride
And I learned that lesson but I learned it too late
Became the man you needed after you walked away

I saw you last week, you looked happy, you looked free
There was a ring on your finger that should've been from me
And I smiled because you deserve that peace
Even if it breaks me knowing I could've been the one
If I had just grown up a little faster
If I had just loved you a little smarter

The hardest part isn't knowing that I lost you
It's knowing that I had everything and didn't see it
You were patient when I gave you reasons not to be
You were faithful when I made it hard to stay
You were loving when I didn't love myself enough
To recognize a blessing standing right in front of me

I don't write this song to win you back, that ship has sailed
I write it for the man I used to be as a warning
That the woman willing to fight for you won't fight forever
That her patience has a limit even when her love does not
That one day she'll wake up and choose herself over you
And you'll spend the rest of your life wishing you had too

So if you're listening and you've got a good woman at home
One who loves you despite every reason not to
Don't be the fool I was, thinking she'll always be there
Thinking you can grow up tomorrow and she'll wait
Because tomorrow has a way of never coming
And she has a way of finding someone who's already the man

This is my confession, this is my testimony
I became the man you needed but I became him too late
And I hope he treats you the way I should have
I hope he gives you everything I was too scared to give
You deserve it all, you always did
I just wish I had been ready to give it to you

Modern R&B, powerful soulful male vocals, lush piano and strings, emotional builds, smooth harmonies, cinematic Sorry