Traded My Presence

[Verse 1]
I polished my edges for strangers
Put my heart in a script on a screen
You sat in the glow in the corner
Watching me vanish between

I traded my presence for my performance
Put on a show instead of a life
Every applause was a warning
Every cheer
Another knife

[Chorus]
I traded my presence for my performance
Now the stage feels colder than this silence
My words are marking our distance
Every line I say
Pushes you away
I traded my presence for my performance
And I miss you more with every chorus

[Verse 2]
You learned to read eyes in the hallway
I learned to fake light on my face
You waited at home with the questions
I turned the truth into grace

I traded my presence for my performance
Signed my time to a shimmering lie
You held your breath in the doorway
I held my mask to the sky

[Chorus]
I traded my presence for my performance
Now the stage feels colder than this silence
My words are marking our distance
Every line I say
Pushes you away
I traded my presence for my performance
And I miss you more with every chorus

[Bridge]
If I step down
If I step close
Will you still know me
Past all these clothes (oh)
If I say less
If I stand still
Could we find something
That feels like real

[Chorus]
I traded my presence for my performance
Now the stage feels softer than this silence
My words are healing the distance
Every truth I say
Pulls you back my way
I traded my presence for my performance
Now I trade it back
Just to hear you laugh