[A cappella — intimate female mezzo/contralto, completely unaccompanied]
They know me by the silence
That falls before I come
They know enough to leave me
Before the running starts
[Single low piano note; sparse piano and cello enter]
[Verse 1]
I hear the change in breathing
I feel it in the room
The little shift of bodies
Making space for me to move
I’ve watched the brave go quiet
I’ve watched the proud look down
Fear has its own language
I know every sound
[Pre-Chorus — strings begin rising]
Then you put your hands into your pockets
Like you’d already learned my name
No quickened breath
No backward step
No instinct screaming run away
[Chorus — full band explodes; huge guitars, drums, stacked female harmonies]
Everybody fears the dark
Before it reaches through
Everybody watches me
But I only watch you
Let them move
Let them run
Fear will tell them what to do
Everybody watches me
But I only watch you
[Verse 2 — pull back; piano, low guitar pulse]
You never tried to tame me
Never asked me to be still
Never called restraint a weakness
Never bent me to your will
You saw the teeth behind the smile
The hunger underneath
And somehow standing next to you
Was where I chose to be
[Pre-Chorus — heavier build]
I know the scent of panic
I know a trembling hand
But you looked straight into the thing
No one else could stand
[Chorus — full band, higher harmony]
Everybody fears the dark
Before it reaches through
Everybody watches me
But I only watch you
Let them move
Let them run
Fear will tell them what to do
Everybody watches me
But I only watch you
[Bridge — instruments cut; voice + low piano, gradually building]
They think you walk beside me
Because I keep you safe
Let them keep believing
What they need to think tonight
They see the danger in my eyes
And never think to look at you
[Beat of silence]
I knew what you were
Before they knew what I was
[Final Chorus — massive guitars, strings, drums, soaring stacked vocals]
Everybody fears the dark
But darkness knows what’s true
Every eye is fixed on me
While mine stay fixed on you
Let them move
Let them run
Let them pray we pass on through
Everybody watches me
But I only watch you
[Outro — band drops away; a cappella, close-mic]
No quickened breath
No backward step
[Whisper]
That’s how I knew.
Brigids_Hearth
