The One They Used to Watch

[Verse 1]
I took the high stone where the fires burn low
Where the noise of the camp don’t follow you home
Boots on the edge, just staring down
At a valley that don’t say a word back now
They used to look when I walked through the line
Like I carried a spark, like I carried a sign
Now it’s all guns and plans and names I ain't 
And the silence hits harder than the war drums’ paint

[Pre-Chorus]
She said some things I don’t recall saying out loud
(you were…)
Like she’d been listening under the sound
(they watched…)

[Chorus]
She said, you were the one they used to watch
(used to… watch)
Don’t tell me that kind of fire just stops
(don’t… stop)
They build their stories and leave you behind
(leave… behind)
But chosen ain’t something the world rewinds
(chosen… once)
Now I’m hearing her voice in the dead of night
(still here…)
Like she’s pulling a thread I can’t hold tight
(pulling…)
The one they forgot… might still be used
(still… used)

[Verse 2]
She didn’t laugh when I said “used to be”
Just stood there quiet like it still meant more
Said the world moves fast when it gets what it needs
Leaves the rest in the dirt like broken deeds

[Pre-Chorus]
And I tried to shake it, tried to let it go
(don’t let it go)
But she saw the part I don’t let show
(I see it still)

[Chorus]
She said, you were the one they used to watch
(you were the one)
Don’t tell me that kind of fire just stops
(it doesn’t stop)
They build their stories and leave you behind
(they left you behind)
But chosen ain’t something the world rewinds
(you were chosen)

[Bridge]
There are places quieter than this
(come and see)
Where the truth don’t fade and the past don’t miss
(it remembers)
Where you can hear what’s calling still
(it calls you)

[Final Chorus]
She said, you were the one they used to watch
(you still are)
Don’t tell me that kind of fire just stops
(it never stopped)
They build their stories and leave you behind
(leave them behind)
But chosen ain’t something the world rewinds
(you were chosen for this)
Now I’m hearing her voice and it won’t fade out
(I won’t fade)
It’s louder than the guns, louder than doubt
(hear me now)
Like I’m not empty… like I’m not done
(you are not done)

Dark cinematic folk, male vocal, evolving female echo, haunting, slow burn, eerie whispers grow stronger, emotional