[Intro – melodic, soft voice]
Try to run, try to hide
But the past still walks by my side
Memories like chains, tight on my soul
Some stories never get old… they just bleed
[Verse 1 - raw rap]
Moved to a new street, same city light
Tried to build peace, tried to make it right
Gambled once at the fair, felt grown
From ten to a hundred, then lost it all alone
Just rides and laughs with my bro that day
Till a ghost from my past came to take it away
Didn’t know him at first, then I felt the dread
The one who stood still when I bled
He looked at my boy, tried to spill my name
Said lies loud, tried to bring me shame
I cut him quick, said “I don’t know this guy”
Grabbed my friend’s hand, ran like I could fly
'Cause truth in the wrong mouth’s a loaded gun
Could lose my friend, my peace undone
But that was just the first blow back
The devil returned, same old track
[Chorus – melodic, dramatic]
I saw the devil with my eyes wide
He wore a smile, said “come for a ride”
But this time I stood, didn’t play his game
My mom stood up, sent him back in shame
But the past don’t die, it twists and returns
In every shadow, my memory burns
I carry the weight, I carry the flame
But I’m not the boy who’s silent in pain
[Verse 2 – low tone, storytelling]
Saw two boys play a game too dark
Hiding under beds, I saw the spark
The hurt, the silence, the frozen fear
Like watching my story in a mirror clear
A kid forced down, while another took
I didn’t stop it, just sat and looked
Like my “bro” did to me, back then
Now I know what silence does to men
They came again, lied their way inside
Blindfold games, dirty tricks they hide
Said "feel with your mouth," called it a game
But I knew that wasn't no pencil name
They crossed a line with their little joke
But my soul already bore the smoke
Another time, a man in his twenties tried
But this time I escaped, I survived
[Bridge - soft, feminine or melodic voice]
Internet shadows, poison screens
Sick images fed into my dreams
Parents too busy, never saw the sign
What kids watch… rewires their mind
[Chorus – repetition with force]
I saw the devil with my eyes wide
He wore a smile, said “come for a ride”
But this time I stood, didn’t play his game
My mom stood up, sent him back in shame
But the past don’t die, it twists and returns
In every shadow, my memory burns
I carry the weight, I carry the flame
But I’m not the boy who’s silent in pain
[Other - whispered, dark]
The twist from the past…
Still tight like a chain
But now I write it down…
And bleed it out… through the flame