The Smile That Isn’t There

(Creepy K-Pop / dark synth-pop vibe, whispery verses, glossy hook, uneasy dance beat)

He shows up in the corner of the mirror light

Black-eyed patience, always just out of sight

Pacing in the rhythm of my blinking room

I swear I lock the door, he’s already in the tune

On the subway screen, in the vending glow

Sits a little cat I didn’t know I know

Tail like smoke, grin like broken glass

Every time I look away, he doubles past

He says, “You’re late. I’ve been here for a while.”

Then he disappears… into his smile

And I know, I know I shouldn’t have eaten that

Shouldn’t have taken that thing that made the world go flat

Now the walls are breathing, and the floor falls through

And I’m talking to a cat that nobody knew

I shouldn’t have swallowed the color of the night

Shouldn’t have chased that feeling just to feel alright

Now I’m small in a world that’s way too tall

And the Cheshire grin is laughing through it all

He sits on my shoulder when the beat drops low

Whispers, “You’re the only one who sees me though”

But I saw him split in the LED rain

Two cats laughing in identical pain

He says, “We’re all mad here,” with a flick of his tail

Like a bedtime story that was doomed to fail

And every step I take in this neon maze

He’s one step ahead in a glitching gaze

“Where are you?” I shout to the empty hall

He replies, “You just called… that’s all.”

And I know, I know I shouldn’t have eaten that

Shouldn’t have taken that thing that made the world go flat

Now the ceiling’s dripping into pixel streams

And reality folds like broken dreams

I shouldn’t have swallowed that glowing lie

Now the sky is laughing when I try to fly

And I’m small, so small in a spinning call

While the Cheshire grin devours it all

[Bridge] (whispered, half-sung)

“Most everyone’s mad here,” he purrs in my ear

“You just finally noticed what’s already here”

But I’m trying to reach for the normal door

It keeps turning into a smile on the floor

I know, I know I shouldn’t have eaten that

Shouldn’t have chased that escape when I wanted it back

Now I’m dancing with shadows that talk to me

In a cat-shaped lie of reality

I shouldn’t have taken that moment to fall

Now I hear my name in the static call

And I’m small, so small in a spinning hall

While the grin that shouldn’t be there sees it all

He waves from nowhere, says, “See you soon.”

Then disappears into the mouth of the moon…

And I swear I hear him purring through the wall:

“You were never small… just not here at all.”