Echo That Stays

A late-night movie with the volume low
Two screens glowing like we didn’t know
How silence grows teeth when the signal drops
We held on hard, then we let it rot
Jealous hands on a fragile thread
Love on fire, pride in the bed

I didn’t miss the war we made
I miss the way you used my name like it

It’s not love, it’s a ghost in the hallway
A shadow that’s dressed in yesterday
I don’t want you back, I just want the talking
The are you there? When the world feels toxic
And I hate how a dream can pull me under
With a memory that still has thunder
It’s not love
It’s the echo that stays

I watched your life through a glass display
Small clips, bright lights, you look okay
A shelf of songs and borrowed time
And one little thing that used to be mine
A silver figure catching the frame
You paused like you felt it say my name

I didn’t miss the cold goodbyes
I miss the hours that never died on the line

It’s not love, it’s a ghost in the hallway
A shadow that’s dressed in yesterday
I don’t want you back, I just want the talking
The are you there? When the world feels toxic
And I hate how a dream can pull me under
With a memory that still has thunder
It’s not love
It’s the echo that stays

In the dream you reached out, open hand
Like peace was easy, like you’d understand
There was a station full of borrowed light
And I stayed frozen in a past rewrite
I didn’t take your hand
Not out of hate
Out of survival

It’s not love, it’s a ghost in the hallway
A soft ache humming in a cheap parade
I don’t want you back, I just want the talking
The I'm still here when the heart is rocking
If you ever felt that pause in the ending
Maybe it’s two old storms finally bending
It’s not love
It’s the echo that stays