Can’t Pretend

[Intro]
(soft guitar, distant hum)
Yeah… yeah…
Do you feel it? (feel it)

[Verse 1]
I see a man on a broken street
Hands out low, too proud to Beg
Eyes worn down, too tired to Cry
World walks past, just shakes its head

You say “not mine, not my fight”
Turn your back, sleep at night
But I can’t close mine that tight
Something here don’t feel right

[Pre-Chorus]
If it was you in the cold
Would you still be so bold?

[Chorus - Anthemic]
I can’t kill this feeling inside
I still Cry when I see the divide
You call it fate, I call it pain
We’re not that different, we bleed the same
Where’s the Love you preach so loud?
Where’s the peace behind the crowd?
I’m sorry… I can’t pretend
If we don’t Help, where does it end? (end… end…)

[Verse 2]
You wear your faith like armor bright
But your hands stay clean at night
Talk of peace, but filled with Hate
Judge their lives, decide their fate

Say they’re weak, say they’re wrong
Like you’ve never needed someone
Selfish hearts don’t ever see
How close that edge could really be

[Pre-Chorus]
Walk a mile in their shoes
Tell me what would you choose?

[Chorus]
I can’t kill this feeling inside
I still Cry when I see the divide
You call it fate, I call it pain
We’re not that different, we bleed the same
Where’s the Love you preach so loud?
Where’s the peace behind the crowd?
I’m sorry… I can’t pretend
If we don’t Help, where does it end? (oh… end…)

[Bridge]
(quiet, building)
Give a little… (Give…)
Break the wall… (break it down)
Feel their fall… (feel it now)
We’re one breath from it all

You could be the one to change
Or just look away again

[Breakdown]
(shimmering guitars swell)
Selfish… selfish… (why so cold?)
Hearts turned numb, bought and sold

[Final Chorus]
I won’t kill this feeling inside
I still Cry, I won’t let it die
You call it fate, I call it pain
We’re not that different, we bleed the same
Where’s the Love you preach so loud?
Where’s the peace behind the crowd?
I’m sorry… I won’t pretend
I’ll still Help ‘til the end (the end… the end…)

[Outro]
(soft, fading)
Give… Help… Love…
Yeah… yeah…

90s Alt-Rock, melancholic acoustic verses, explosive melodic chorus, shimmering guitars, post-grunge male vocals