Ghost In Our Favorite Place

[Verse 1]
You’re laughing at my old jokes
She don’t know they used to be yours
Same booth in the back by the window
Same crack in the tile on the floor
Menus open but I’m somewhere
Tracing initials in my mind
She says
“You okay?” and I swear
I choke on both of our lives
[Pre-Chorus]
I raise my glass between two worlds
Her reflection
Your shadow
Smiling for a picture
Praying it don’t show
[Chorus]
There’s a ghost in our favorite place
Sitting right where you used to stay
I’m staring straight at her face
But all I see is yesterday
I know it ain’t fair
I know it ain’t right
To be touching her hand while I’m holding you tight
I’m trying to move on
Baby
I swear
But you’re still here
You’re still here
[Verse 2]
She’s talking ‘bout her brothers and summers
I’m hearing your car in the rain
Her fingers run slow ‘round her glass
Mine go searching your name
That song from the jukebox is playing
We used to hum every line
I feel this apology rising
But the words won’t align
[Pre-Chorus]
I keep nodding like I’m present
But I’m parked in your eyes
She leans in a little closer
I lean into a lie
[Chorus]
There’s a ghost in our favorite place
Sitting right where you used to stay
I’m staring straight at her face
But all I see is yesterday
I know it ain’t fair
I know it ain’t right
To be touching her hand while I’m holding you tight
I’m trying to move on
Baby
I swear
But you’re still here
You’re still here
[Bridge]
Maybe I rushed this
Maybe I’m scared to be free (oh no)
She deserves a heart that’s open
Not a door with your key
So I breathe in the moment
Let your memory fade just a trace
Tell myself
“Let her in
Or stop coming to this place”
[Chorus]
Still there’s a ghost in our favorite place
Sitting right where you used to stay
I’m staring straight at her face
But you keep getting in the way
I know it ain’t fair
I know it ain’t right
To be touching her hand while I’m holding you tight
I’m trying to move on
Baby
I swear
But you’re still here
You’re still here
You’re still here (oh)

Smoky mid-tempo R&B ballad, male vocals in a low register. Warm Rhodes and soft fingerstyle guitar over deep, round bass; rimshot groove with sparse percussion. Verses stay intimate and close-mic’d, pre-chorus adds subtle pads, chorus blooms with stacked harmonies and a distant, airy choir. Bridge strips back to vocal and keys, final chorus swells then falls to a hushed outro., deep