[Verse 1]
Council room
White chalk dust
Perfect scores
Perfect trust?
Eyes like knives
Over test sheets
Every move
Calculated heartbeat
You say “How was class?”
Like it’s nothing at all
But your hand clenched tight
On your protocol
I straighten my tie
Like a shield on my chest
Who confesses first
Loses this test
[Pre-Chorus]
We’re so close
Paper-thin pride
Same dream
Different sides
Hear that bell
It’s another round
Feel my pulse
Like a countdown
[Chorus]
Love is war in the after-school light
Heart-shaped traps every day, every night
“Checkmate” whispered at the classroom door
But I want more, I want more
Acting cool but I’m ready to fall
You’re my win and my wreck and my wall
If I say it, do I lose the score?
Love is war, love is war
[Verse 2]
Culture fest
Paper fans sway
Fireworks
Waiting backstage
You fix my tie
Like it’s nothing big
But my brain short-circuits
From that small gig
Group chat blows
With the memes and the teasing
Idol hooks stuck
In my breathing
You laugh too loud
When our hands collide
Tiny glitch
In the perfect lie
[Pre-Chorus]
We’re so loud
But our hearts hush
Slow steps
In a hallway rush
Friends scream
“Just say it already”
But my tongue
Is a loaded confetti
[Chorus]
Love is war in the after-school light
Heart-shaped traps every day, every night
“Checkmate” whispered at the classroom door
But I want more, I want more
Acting cool but I’m ready to fall
You’re my win and my wreck and my wall
If I say it, do I lose the score?
Love is war, love is war
[Bridge]
[Beat drops to tense, half-time rock groove]
I play the clown, you play the queen (hey!)
We both hide what we really mean
I call you cold, you call me proud
But your name is the soft part of every crowd
Spin that rumor, spin that dare
Truth or dare, truth or stare
“Accidentally” walking home the same way
Holding back a thousand words a day (woah)
[Chorus]
Love is war in the after-school light
Heart-shaped traps every day, every night
“Checkmate” whispered at the classroom door
But I want more, I want more
Acting cool but I’m ready to fall
You’re my win and my wreck and my wall
If we lose, do we win even more?
Love is war… love is war