(Verse 1)
Streetlights flicker like they’re half-asleep
Sneakers on the dashboard, music way too deep
Windows down, summer stuck to our skin
Laughing so hard we forget where we’ve been
Gas tank’s flirting with empty, who cares?
We’re rich in bad ideas and cheap beers
(Pre-Chorus)
Clock on the radio says it’s late
But late’s just a word grown-ups made
(Chorus)
We’re staying out ‘til 3 a.m., maybe four, maybe never coming in
Gravel roads and broken plans, middle fingers to the man
Getting lost like it’s a game, writing curses in the flames
Of a fire we swore would never die
We’re too dumb to say goodbye
Tonight we’re never growing up
3 a.m. forever, never growing up
(Verse 2)
Cops roll by slow, we kill the lights
Hide in the cornfield, hearts beating like punk-rock fights
Somebody’s yelling from the rooftop again
Truth or dare with the laws of men
Your dad’s gonna kill you, my mom’s gonna cry
But right now we’re immortal and way too high
(Pre-Chorus)
Time keeps trying to drag us home
But home’s wherever we roam
(Chorus)
We’re staying out ‘til 3 a.m., maybe four, maybe never coming in
Gravel roads and broken plans, middle fingers to the man
Getting lost like it’s a game, writing curses in the flames
Of a fire we swore would never die
We’re too dumb to say goodbye
Tonight we’re never growing up
3 a.m. forever, never growing up
(Bridge)
One day we’ll wake up with bills and regret
Kids and a job and a life in debt
But tonight the world can wait its turn
We’ve got matches left to burn
(Final Chorus – louder, messier)
Scream it out ‘til 3 a.m., maybe five, maybe we’re too alive
Gravel in our veins, trouble in our blood, swear we’ll never fall in love
With tomorrow and its chains
Let it crash like thunder rain
We were kings of nowhere town
Never coming down
Tonight we’re never growing up
3 a.m. forever
Yeah, we meant it when we said it
Never growing up
(Outro – half-whispered over fading guitar)
See you at the dead-end sign
Same time tomorrow night
We’ll still be seventeen…
…at 3 a.m.