[Intro – sink drip, low breath, almost spoken]
Before the quiet
There’s work to do
[Verse 1]
Water runs the way it should
Clear, then gone again
Soap don’t ask what came before
It only knows the end
Knuckles ache but still obey
Habit beats the pain
Every surface has a job
Every mark a name
[Pre-Chorus]
I don’t rush the mess
I erase the sound
Nothing leaves
Until it’s found
[Chorus]
Clean first
Then quiet
Order earns the calm
If nothing’s left
There’s nothing wrong
Hands rinse
Mind clears
Same routine, same art
Clean first
Before the dark
[Verse 2]
Fabric folds the way I like
Corners squared and tight
Stains lie louder when you rush
Patience keeps them light
I’ve learned where eyes forget
Where dust forgives the rest
History is easy work
When nothing’s left to guess
[Pre-Chorus 2]
You can’t prove
What won’t remain
Silence hides inside the clean
[Chorus]
Clean first
Then quiet
Every trace denied
If no one sees
Nothing died
Floor shines
Clock ticks
Same as when I start
Clean first
Before the dark
[Bridge – minimal, chilling]
They’ll look for chaos
They’ll look for blame
They won’t look twice
At something plain
No shattered glass
No overturned chairs
Nothing says
I was ever there
[Final Chorus – restrained, heavier]
Clean first
Then quiet
Room forgives the act
What’s erased
Can’t talk back
If they ask
It looks the same
Just a room
Without a name
[Outro – whispered, rule spoken aloud]
Clean first.
Always.