O MY SOUL I LOVED YOU THEN

taken from the album by dry the river. feel free to adjust to fit your needs!

"i waited by your bedside."

"i couldn't close my eyes all night."

"i named you like a prayer."

"it's anybody's guess how the angel of doubt came down and crept into your bed."

"i know it's gotta stop, love, but i don't know how."

"we're wise beyond our years, but we're good at bad ideas."

"don't think about the future."

"i'm burning like an effigy in here."

"i wish you could've warned me."

"we fill our traveling diaries with loss."

"as heavy as a history book can be, i will carry it with me."

"maybe when the bitterness has gone, there'll be sweetness on our tongues once more."

"i wear my sorrow like a crown."

"i'll be on your side."

"where does love come from?"

"in the land of mistakes, i should lay my crosses down."

"it's the chambers and the valves that pump the sentiment around."

"if every constellation above us has a counterpart below, how are we to know?"

"fortune hangs around us like a funerary wreath."

"you are the string in my bow."

"the north isn't true 'til it's leading me to you."

"death is a force, not a man on a horse."

"i'll keep you safe while you sleep."

"we'll fight those demons, day in and day out."

"your mother is drinking again."

"you are a low moon, steady with wintry calm."

"you take the cards that you're dealt."

"there's no guiding light arching a line to bethlehem. if it's dark outside, you light the fire yourself."

"don't look so scared."

"we've been through worse than this before we could talk."

"the trick of it is, don't be afraid anymore."

"i used to be a king alone."

"i loved you in the best way possible."

"did you see the light in my heart?"

"did you see the fear in my heart?"

"there's more bottles than the trees in green england."

"in the morning i'm light, but in the evening i'm heavy now."

"try as i might, i just can't keep it steady now."

"you've made your decision. now get up and leave."

"i was prepared to love you and never expect anything of you."

"if the spirit has left you, don't lie to yourself."

"just because we're beasts of blame by nature doesn't mean that you should carry it again."

"it's a question of needs and not rosary beads in the end."

"there's no patron saint of silent restraint."

"baby, there ain't no sword in our lake—just a funeral wake."

"you were the coldest star in the sky. only i couldn't see it: i was blind."

"in comes the black night, calling your name since you were born."

"i never had such a feeling before you came."

"i need it like a hole in the head."

"bury your worry."

"the weather is changing every day, but i won't."

"i guess i had a vision of every unavoidable mistake."

"the thing about the heart is it beats with no instruction from the mind."

"you could hammer a nail with the way i feel."

"you won't find us in the bible."

taken from the 2023 album by the mountain goats

"remember at your peril."

"forget the ones you can."

"i left home feeling empty."

"they made a space for you."

"this world is sad and broken, gotta fix a crack or two."

"rest until you're rested."

"just when you think you've learned how to forget, you learn it's just the ones who haven't risen to the surface yet."

"this will be the last time i do this, i'm pretty sure."

"no one lasts for long in this profession, so they say."

"maybe i'll see you again someday."

"you can make out all the exits from a static position."

"i'm never gonna break my neck falling down stairs."

"you can light a cigarette against the cooktop if you need to."

"you're never gonna get by on three hours' sleep a night."

"you're never gonna get by on three hours' sleep a night, unless you absolutely have to. then you'll get by alright."

"you're gonna get a wrinkle on your forehead."

"you're gonna make a bargain with the bad guys."

"you're gonna make some choices you regret."

"there's no place to hide from the prophecy."

"there's only one way out."

"there's only one way out, no matter what you do."

"watch for the signs."

"you're gonna have to steal what you need."

"they're never gonna let you forget."

"but if all that's true, what about you?"

"i think i'm gonna take you in."

"i've always had to follow my instincts."

"usually, i'm out on my own."

"what happens if i take you home?"

"i'm headed for a season in exile, as the oracle predicted."

"according to reliable sources, in thirty days i'm getting evicted."

"i've seen ones like you before."

"i gave you an answer that i thought you'd buy."

"all of this will disappear in the twinkling of an eye."

"i can hear the timer ticking in my chest."

"what are you gonna do?"

"it's better if you have a plan."

"i saw the future in an oil slick, it told me what i need to know: leave a little stain behind you everywhere you go."

"i'm only slightly diminished, older but wiser."

"when you've got a big job to do, you notice how the moments drag."

"live in the present."

"relish the time before you have to leave it behind."

"i'm smarter but scared, now."

"wearing an exile's mark: one that's gonna glow in the dark."

"take all your worry and care, feed it to the big machine."

"once you commit to the turn, you're gonna have to follow through."

"it's the only thing you can do."

"what's become of us?"

"when the vision comes, i have no resistance."

"i used to get so scared."

"it wasn't in your nature, taking in strays."

"i clung to you for days."

"i'm strong now. that was all years back."

"it's somewhere in a wreckyard now. never see it again on this earth."

"let the scavengers proclaim how much it was worth."

"i figure something's gotta happen sometime."

"i wait all day for you."

"i can smell the threat of rain in the air."

"i can only try to understand."

"a small amount of pressure in the right place breaks the strongest link in the chain."

"i'm trying not to buckle under the strain."

"i'll take anything that the others won't."

"i can see the value where others don't."

"i'm striking a bargain with the imp in my brain."

"you're prepared to take another knock for the short game, but you can ask any veteran running back: eventually your joints complain."

"everyone deserves a little light in their hair."

"everybody needs to love and be loved."

"anything to help with the pain."

"you have to be headed somewhere."

"somebody comes bearing the standard just when you need to see it held high."

"i feel something bigger than me."

"a body floating in a water tower only has one way to go."

"never thought we'd see the day when you wiggled free, but you did long before we did."

"i didn't guess we'd ever come to dread that engine's roar."

"nobody will ever know for certain the names of all the secrets i've held back behind the curtain."

"aging motorcycles purr like cats when they draw near."

"i could barely make the frame out through my tears."

"nobody's ever gonna pour plaster in my tracks. my exit will be clean when i vanish from the scene."

"you won't find any thumbprints to dust your powder into."

"depends on the way the wind blows."

"kiss the people you hold dear and forget that i was ever here."

"if word should reach you from the field, be cool."

"make them beat it out of you if they want it."

"if they steer me wrong, i'm just gonna play along."

"let me go to no haven anyone would yearn for."

"let me go free."

"on the morning when i stop looking back, i'll be up to see the sunrise."

"may you emerge free and clear."

"may you do some good where you go."

taken from the mountain goats album. tws for toxic relationships and mentions of alcoholism. feel free to change pronouns, etc.

TALLAHASSEE

"i pray to summon the destroying angel." "there is no deadline, there is no schedule." "there is no plan we can fall back on." "the road this far can't be retraced." "there is no punchline anybody can tack on." "there are loose ends by the score. what did i come down here for?" "what did i come down here for? you."

FIRST FEW DESPERATE HOURS

"bad luck comes in on the back of a truck." "we try to keep our spirits high, but they flag and they wane." "let the good times roll on through these first few desperate hours." "the sun peeks in like a killer through the curtain." "we keep up the good fight. we keep our spirits light."

SOUTHWOOD PLANTATION ROAD

"i've got you. you've got whatever's left of me to get." "our conversations are like minefields: no one's found a safe way through one yet." "i'll spend a lot of money, i'll buy you white gold." "all night long you giggle and scream." "i am not going to lose you." "i am not going to lose you. we are going to stay married in this house like a louisiana graveyard, where nothing stays buried." "the dead will walk again, put on their sunday best, and mingle with unsuspecting christian men."

GAME SHOWS TOUCH OUR LIVES

"that stuff tastes like medicine, but i'll take it. it'll do." "i'm in the mood for you." "i held onto you with a desperate strength, with everything in me." "it's a drink of the lovely little thing on which our survival depends." "people say friends don't destroy one another... what do they know about friends?" "everything's gonna be okay soon. maybe tomorrow, maybe the next day." "cars are headed down to oblivion up on the expressway." "your drunken kiss is as light as the air." "maybe everything that falls down eventually rises."

THE HOUSE THAT DRIPPED BLOOD

"look beyond the broken bottles, past the rotting wooden stairs." "not everyone can live like billionaires." "tear up the floorboards." "grab your hat, get your coat." "dig up the laughing photographs, they're here somewhere or other." "take what you can carry, but let me tell you: still water's going stagnant, bodies bloat, and the cellar door is an open throat."

IDYLLS OF TKING

"this day is full of promise and potential." "our shared paths are unraveling behind us like ribbons." "i dreamed of vultures in the trees around our house." "how long will we ride this wave out?" "how long till someone caves under the pressure?" "my dreams are haunted by armies of ghosts. faces too blurry to make out, numbers far too high to measure." "your eyes are twin volcanoes, bad ideas dancing around in there."

NO CHILDREN

"i hope that our few remaining friends give up on trying to save us. i hope we come up with a fail-safe plot to piss off the dumb few that forgave us." "i hope the fences we mended fall down beneath their own weight." "i hope it's already too late." "i hope the junkyard a few blocks from here someday burns down, and i hope the rising black smoke carries me far away and i never come back to this town again." "i hope i lie and tell everyone you were a good wife." "i hope you die." "i hope you die. i hope we both die." "our friends say it's darkest before the sun rises. i'm pretty sure they're all wrong." "i hope it stays dark forever. i hope the worst isn't over." "i hope you blink before i do, and i hope i never get sober." "i hope when you think of me years down the line, you can't find one good thing to say." "i hope that if i found the strength to walk out, you'd stay the hell out of my way." "i am drowning. there is no sign of land." "you are coming down with me, hand in unlovable hand."

SEE AMERICA RIGHT

"the radiator burst." "i was three sheets to the wind." "your love is like a cyclone in a swamp, and the weather's getting warmer." "you said you'd hop on one yourself and meet me on the way down." "i'm shaking way too hard to think." "i'm dead on my feet." "if we never make it back, i want you to know i love you." "my love is like a dark cloud full of rain that's always right there up above you."

PEACOCKS

"grab hold of the morning."' "i fear for my safety. you can see it in my eyes." "sun's all prickly on my neck." "seize opportunity right where it lies." "the sky will fall, we will rise."

INTERNATIONAL SMALL ARMS TRAFFIC BLUES

"my love is like a powder keg." "my love is like a powder keg in the corner of an empty warehouse, somewhere just outside of town, about to burn down." "our love is like the border between greece and albania." "there is a shortage in the blood supply, but there is no shortage of blood." "the way i feel about you, baby, i can't explain it." "you got the best of my love."

HAVE TO EXPLODE

"someone's gonna do something someone else will regret." "i speak in smoke signals, and you answer in code." "something here will eventually have to explode." "name one thing about us two anyone could love." "we roll out the red carpet when rotten luck comes down the road."

OLD COLLEGE TRY

"the warning signs have all been bright and garish, far too great in number to ignore." "our love has never had a leg to stand on." "but i will walk down to the end with you if you will come all the way down with me." "i want to say i'm sorry for stuff i haven't done yet." "things will shortly get completely out of hand: i can feel it in the rotten air tonight." "in the weak last gasp of the evening's dying light, those eyes i've always loved illuminate this place." "your eyes illuminate this place like the trashcan fire in a prison cell. like the searchlights in the parking lots of hell."

OCEANOGRAPHER'S CHOICE

"i don't know why i'm so persuaded that if i think things through long enough and hard enough, i'll somehow get to you." "would you look at that, we're throwing off sparks." "what will i do when i don't have you to hold onto in the dark?" "everybody's gonna need a witness." "everybody's gonna need a little backup in case the scene gets nasty." "i don't know why it's gotten harder to keep myself away." "i thought i'd finally beat the feeling back, but it all came back today."" "we knocked the dresser over." "i don't mean it when i tell you that i don't love you anymore."

ALPHA RATS NEST

taken from the album by the mountain goats. feel free to change pronouns, etc. tw for mentions/implications of familial abuse, drug use, and suicide

feel free to change pronouns, etc.

taken from the 2023 album. feel free to change pronouns, etc.

LOVE FROM THE OTHER SIDE

' i'm dying out here. ' ' what would you trade the pain for? ' ' we were a hammer to the statue of david. ' ' we were a painting you could never frame. ' ' you were the sunshine of my lifetime. ' ' this city always hangs a little bit lonely on me, loose like a kid playing pretend in his father's suit. ' ' i'd never go, i just want to be invited. ' ' you've got to give up. ' ' don't fight it. ' ' i'm sending my love from the other side of the apocalypse. ' ' i just about snapped. ' ' don't look back. ' ' every lover's got a little dagger in their hand. ' ' i'm falling in and out of love. ' ' i'm getting that tilted feeling. ' ' nowhere left for us to go but heaven. ' ' summer's falling through our fingers again. ' ' we're taught we've gotta get ahead no matter what it takes, but there's no way off the hamster wheel on this rat race. ' ' i saw you in a bright clear field, hurricane heat in my head. ' ' it's the kind of pain you feel to get good in the end. ' ' give up what you love before it does you in. '

HEARTBREAK FEELS SO GOOD

' no matter what they tell you, the future's up for grabs. ' ' is there a word for a bad miracle? ' ' nobody said the road was endless. ' ' nobody said the climb was friendless. ' ' could we please pretend this won't end? ' ' it was an uphill battle, but they didn't know we were gonna use the roads as a ramp to take off. ' ' we could cry a little, or cry a lot. ' ' don't stop dancing. ' ' don't you dare stop. ' ' we'll cry later or cry now. ' ' we could dance our tears away, emancipate ourselves. ' ' but baby, heartbreak feels so good. ' ' heartbreak feels so good. ' ' we said we'd never grow up. ' ' it's open season on blue moods. '

HOLD ME LIKE A GRUDGE

' when you ask how i've been, i know you mean well. ' ' who am i dialing tonight? ' ' that's a bummer. ' ' burn feelings for twenty summers. ' ' i'm just a cherub riding comets through the night sky, screaming at the stars like night lights. ' ' i love my life. ' ' i guess i'm getting older, cause i'm less pissed. ' ' to the end of the world. ' ' you put the "fun" into dysfunction. ' ' hold me like a grudge. ' ' the world is always spinning, and i can't keep up. ' ' i can't do it on my own. ' ' part-time soulmate, full-time problem. ' ' i guess somehow we made it back with a few dreams of ours still intact. ' ' i am a diamond on the inside, just add the pressure. ' ' i know it's inside me, but i've got no map to my own treasure. ' ' i thought i knew better. ' ' i thought it would get better. ' ' i figured somehow by now i would have got it together. ' ' if you put your heart in it, then we'll do more than just get by together. ' ' i'm like a storm on the horizon. '

FAKE OUT

' take a knife and cut through the darkness. ' ' i make no plans, so none can be broken. ' ' remember us just like this forever. ' ' this can't last. it won't last. ' ' do you laugh about me whenever i leave? or do i just need more therapy? ' ' love is in the air, i just gotta figure out a window to break out. ' ' i'm buried alive inside my dreams. ' ' my mood board is just pictures of you. ' ' i'm not sad anymore. ' ' i didn't take the love when i had the chance. ' ' do i still need more therapy? ' ' we all started off as shiny dimes, but we all got flipped too many times. ' ' we did it for futures that never came and for pasts that we're never gonna change. '

HEAVEN, IOWA

' you and i and a screw top bottle of wine? ' ' i feel so "a star is born." ' ' kiss my cheek. ' ' would you read my eulogy? ' ' i will never ask you for anything, except to dream sweet of me. ' ' when the party ends, will you still love who i am? ' ' scar crossed lovers forever. ' ' i'm checking myself out forever. ' ' i'm saving this all for later. ' ' here, we are untouched forever. ' ' they don't know how much they'll miss, at least until you're gone like this. ' ' save your breath. ' ' half your life, you've been hooked on death. ' ' half my life i've been hooked on death. ' ' twice the dreams, but half the love. ' ' be careful what you bottle up. ' ' the chemistry is a mess, it seems, but i'm still a sunbeam. ' ' i closed my eyes inside of your darkness and found your glow. ' ' shake things up, and see what comes down. '

SO GOOD RIGHT NOW

' i got this doom and gloom in my mind. ' ' i feel alright. ' ' let's sneak in from the cheap seats. ' ' we'll drive until the engine just gives up. ' ' feeling so good right now, so we'll crash and burn somehow. ' ' i know i've made mistakes, but at least they were mine to make. ' ' all of our wildest dreams, they just end up with you and me. ' ' i was drifting from the start, and i ripped myself apart. ' ' i'll be whatever you need me to be. ' ' i'll cut myself down to whatever you need me to be. '

THE PINK SEASHELL

' my parents got divorced when i was five years old. ' ' i saw my father about three times a year after that. ' ' he gives me this big pink seashell, and he says to me "the answers are all inside of this." and i'm all like, "what?" now i realize that the shell's empty. there's no point to any of this. ' ' it's all just a random lottery of meaningless tragedy and a series of near escapes. ' ' so i take pleasure in the detail, you know? a quarter pounder with cheese, those are good. the sky about ten minutes before it started to rain. a moment where your laughter becomes a cackle. '

I AM MY OWN MUSE

' here i am. ' ' not sure you should take a chance. ' ' i like playing dumb, letting you figure me out. ' ' i was faded, in my own defense. ' ' drop a bomb on all the things we dreamed about. ' ' smash all the guitars 'til we see all the stars. ' ' we've got to throw this year away like a bad luck charm. ' ' the trumpets bring the angels, but they never came. ' ' no one let them in, 'cause they didn't know my name. ' ' i know i keep my feelings tucked away. ' ' it's just another day spent hoping we don't fall apart. ' ' let's twist the knife again, like we did last summer. ' ' i'm just trying to keep it together, but it gets a little harder when it never gets better. ' ' i'm trying to keep it together. '

FLU GAME

' i guess to you now i'm just a face in the crowd. ' ' oh, god. kindly, please, would you kill me now? ' ' late at night in my room, i lie awake, think of you. ' ' last night i dreamt i still knew you. ' ' i carved out a place in this world for two, but it's empty without you. ' ' i've got all this love i've got to keep to myself. ' ' it takes all this effort to make it look effortless. ' ' confront all the pain like a gift under the tree. ' ' i can't be who you need me to be. ' ' i'm so real that i feel fake. ' ' one day, every candle's gotta run out of wax. ' ' one day, no one will remember me when they look back. ' ' i can't stop 'til we catch all your ears, though. i'm somewhere between mike tyson and van gogh. '

BABY ANNIHILATION

' time is luck, and i wish ours overlapped more, or for longer. ' ' the first time i took the mask off, just had another one on underneath. ' ' i'm just melted wax on a birthday cake. ' ' another year fades away. ' ' it's self-sabotage at best. ' ' you know what they say: if you want a job done right, you gotta do it yourself. ' ' this palace was crystal, but the world was a cruel joke. ' ' what is there between us, if not a little annihilation? '

THE KINTSUGI KID (TEN YEARS)

' i'm pretty sure, as far as humans go, i'm a hard pill to swallow. ' ' i'm not your intended dose. ' ' roll the highlights. ' ' i've got the wrong insides. ' ' i spent ten years in a bit of chemical haze. ' ' i miss the way that i felt. ' ' i passed my old street, the house i grew up in. it breaks your heart. ' ' i felt you at the beginning, but i needed you at the end. ' ' stop me if you've heard this all before too many times after too much alcohol. ' ' you don't know me anymore. '

WHAT A TIME TO BE ALIVE

' that's the way the world used to be before our dreams started bursting at the seams. ' ' we're out here and we're ready. ' ' i don't care if it's pretty. ' ' the view's so pretty from the deck of a sinking ship. ' ' everything is lit except my serotonin and my lightning bolt brain. ' ' i just need someone to hold me. ' ' i just need someone to hold me, even though you don't even know me. ' ' what a time to be alive. ' ' they say i should try meditation, but i don't want to be with my own thoughts. ' ' i just want to be your cherry on top. ' ' when i said "leave me along," this isn't quite what i meant. ' ' what's left? ' ' sometimes you wonder if we're ever looking back. '

SO MUCH (FOR) STARDUST

taken from the 2022 album. feel free to change pronouns, etc. mentions of violence & death (kinda the whole theme of the album).

some words/pronouns changed to better reflect percy & make them more applicable to rp. feel free to alter pronouns, etc. as needed

from fall out boy's 2005 album. feel free to change pronouns, etc. tw for alcohol and drug mentions, as well as some suggestive themes

OUR LAWYER MADE US CHANGE THE NAME OF THIS SONG SO WE WOULDN'T GET SUED

' take my advice. ' ' we're bad news. ' ' i will leave you high and dry. ' ' it's not worth the hearing you'll lose. ' ' it's just past eight, and i'm feeling young and reckless. ' ' we're only liars, but we're the best. ' ' we're only good for the latest trends. ' ' i'm only good cause you can have almost-famous friends. ' ' we've got such good fashion sense. ' ' we're friends when you're on your knees. '

OF ALL THE GIN JOINTS IN ALL THE WORLD

' you only hold me up like this because you don't know who i really am. ' ' sometimes i just want to know what it's like to be you. ' ' we're making out inside crashed cars. ' ' we're sleeping through all our memories. ' ' i used to waste my time dreaming of being alive; now i only waste it dreaming of you. ' ' turn off the lights, and turn off the shyness. ' ' your makeup stains my pillowcase like i'll never be the same. ' ' i've got headaches and bad luck. ' ' i've got headaches and bad luck, but they couldn't touch you. '

DANCE, DANCE

' you say you're no good with words, but i'm worse. ' ' i'm weighed down with words too overdramatic. ' ' it can't get much worse. ' ' no one should ever feel like that. ' ' i don't want to forget how your voice sounds. ' ' these words are all i have, so i write them. ' ' we're falling apart. ' ' these are the lives you'd love to lead. ' ' this is the way they'd love if they knew how misery loved me. ' ' you always fold just before you're found up. ' ' drink up, it's last call. ' ' it's the last resort, but only the first mistake. ' ' why don't you show me the little bit of spine you've been saving for his mattress, love? ' ' i only want sympathy in the form of you crawling into bed with me. '

SUGAR, WE'RE GOIN' DOWN

' am i more than you bargained for yet? ' ' i've been dying to tell you anything you want to hear. ' ' i'm just a notch in your bedpost, but you're just a line in a song. ' ' we're always sleeping in. ' ' we're sleeping for the wrong team. ' ' sugar, we're going down swinging. ' ' i'll be your number one with a bullet: a loaded god complex, cock it and pull it. ' ' is this more than you bargained for yet? ' ' don't mind me. ' ' i'm wishing to be the friction in your jeans. ' ' it's messed up, how i'm just dying to be him. ' ' take back what you said. '

NOBODY PUTS BABY IN THE CORNER

' drink down that gin and kerosene and co me spit on bridges with me just to keep us warm. ' ' i keep my jealousy close, cause it's all mine. ' ' if you say this makes you happy, then i'm not the only one lying. ' ' keep quiet. ' ' nothing comes as easy as you. ' ' can i lay in your bed all day? ' ' i'll be your best-kept secret, and your biggest mistake. ' ' the hand behind this pen relives a failure every day. ' ' wear me like a locket around your throat: i'll weigh you down, i'll watch you choke. you look so good in blue. ' ' you look so good in blue. '

I'VE GOT A DARK ALLEY AND A BAD IDEA THAT SAYS YOU SHOULD SHUT YOUR MOUTH (SUMMER SONG)

' joke me something awful, just like kisses on the necks of "best friends." ' ' we're the kids who feel like dead ends. ' ' i took a shot and didn't even come close at trust, and love, and hope. ' ' the poets are just the kids who didn't make it and never had it at all. ' ' the lies just won't stop slipping. ' ' my reputation's on the line. ' ' we can fake it for the airwaves. ' ' i'm half dead from comparing myself to everyone else around me. ' ' please put the doctor on the phone, 'cause i'm not making any sense. ' ' my back has been breaking from this heavy heart. ' ' i'm hopelessly hopeful, and you're just hopeless enough. ' ' we never had it at all. '

7 MINUTES IN HEAVEN (ATAVAN HALEN)

' i'm sleeping my way out of this one with anyone who'll lie down. ' ' i'll be stuck fixated on one star when the world is crashing down. ' ' i'm not the desperate type. ' ' i sit out dances on the wall. ' ' i'm trying to forget everything that isn't you. ' ' i'm not going home alone, cause i don't do too well on my own. ' ' the only thing worse than not knowing is you thinking that i don't know. '

SOPHOMORE SLUMP OR COMEBACK OF THE YEAR

' are we growing up, or just going down? ' ' it's just a matter of time until we're all found out. ' ' i swear, i'd burn this city down to show you the light. ' ' we're well-read and poised. ' ' no matter what they say, don't believe a word. ' ' i'll keep singing this lie if you'll keep believing it. ' ' i'm the kid you used to love, but i grew old. ' ' we're the lifers: here till the bitter end, condemned from the start. ' ' i'm ashamed of the way the songs and the words own the beating of my heart. ' ' i've got a sunset in my veins. ' ' i need to take a pill to make this town feel okay. ' ' the best part of "believe" is the "lie." ' ' i need to keep you like this in my mind. ' ' so give in, or just give up. '

CHAMPAGNE FOR MY REAL FRIENDS, REAL PAIN FOR MY SHAM FRIENDS

' you are a getaway car, a rush of blood to the head. but me, i'm just the covers on top of your bed. ' ' i keep you warm and won't ask you where you've been. ' ' when it's said and done, they're all scrambling. ' ' we're friends just because we move units. ' ' strike us like matches, cause everyone deserves the flames. ' ' we only do it for the scars and stories, not the fame. ' ' everyone is trying. ' ' it's such a shame. ' ' the sounds of this small town make my ears hurt. ' ' oh yeah, you caught me. ' ' you want a war? you've got a war! ' ' who are you fighting for? ' ' the tide's out, the ship's run aground; we drown traitors in shallow water. '

I SLEPT WITH SOMEONE IN FALL OUT BOY AND ALL I GOT WAS THIS STUPID SONG WRITTEN ABOUT ME

' i found the cure to growing older. ' ' you're the only place that feels like home. ' ' you'll never know. ' ' some secrets weren't meant to be told. ' ' i'm sorry my conscience called in sick again. ' ' i've got arrogance down to a science. ' ' douse yourself in cheap perfume; it's so fitting of the way you are—you can't cover it up. ' ' i can't cover it up. ' ' find a safe place. ' ' you will be missed. ' ' they call kids like us vicious and carved out of stone. but for what we've become, we just feel more alone. ' ' i always weigh what i've got against what i left. ' ' progress report: i am missing you to death. ' ' i'm feeling borrowed and always blue. '

A LITTLE LESS SIXTEEN CANDLES, A LITTLE MORE "TOUCH ME"

' i confess, i messed up. ' ' i've been dropping "i'm sorry" like you're still around. ' ' you dressed up. ' ' you'll never live this down. ' ' you're the girl all the boys want to dance with. ' ' i'm just the boy who's had too many chances. ' ' why don't you just drop dead? ' ' i don't blame you for being you, but you can't blame me for hating it. ' ' what are you waiting for? kiss me. ' ' i set my clocks early, cause i know i'm always late. ' ' write me off. give up on me. ' ' darling, what did you expect? ' ' i'm a lost cause, a long shot; don't even take this bet. ' ' you said you'd keep me honest, but i won't call you on it. '

GET BUSY LIVING OR GET BUSY DYING (DO YOUR PART TO SAVE THE SCENE AND STOP GOING TO SHOWS)

' this has been said so many times that i'm not sure if it matters, but we never stood a chance. ' ' if you are the shores, i am the waves begging for big moons. ' ' i know this hurts. it was meant to. ' ' your secret's out, and the best part is it isn't even a good one. ' ' you don't matter. ' ' we're all just screaming into microphones for attention. ' ' i never knew that you would pick it apart. ' ' i'm falling apart to songs about hips and hearts. ' ' i used to obsess over living; now i only obsess over you. ' ' tell me you'd like boys like me better in the dark, lying on top of you. ' ' from day one, i talked about getting out. ' ' why put a new address on the same old loneliness? '

XO

' i combed the crowd and picked you out. ' ' it starts eyes closed, to fingers crossed, to "i swear, i say." ' ' whatever it takes. ' ' i left my conscience pressed between the pages of the bible in the drawer. ' ' what did it ever do for me? ' ' love never wanted me, but i took it anyway. ' ' choose love or sympathy, but never both. ' ' love never wanted me. ' ' i hoped you choked and crashed your car. ' ' tear catcher: that's all that you are and ever were. ' ' love never calls me when i'm down. ' ' loose lips sink ships. '

SNITCHES AND TALKERS GET STITCHES AND WALKERS

' show me a starry-eyed kid, i'll break his jaw. i won't let him get his hopes up. ' ' i'll save him from myself. ' ' don't turn out like me. ' ' haven't you heard? the word on the street is i lost it, called it quits. ' ' this story's getting old. ' ' i keep you locked up in the trunk of my mind. ' ' even when there's nothing worth living for, you're still worth lying for. '

THE MUSIC OR THE MISERY

' i got my stitches stitched. ' ' i got your love letters. ' ' i got love letters, corrected the grammar, and sent them back. ' ' it's true, romance is dead: i shot it in the chest, and then in the head. ' ' if you want to go down in history, then i'm your prince. ' ' i've never seen a heart i couldn't break. ' ' it was never about the songs, it was competition: make the biggest scene. ' ' which came first: the music or the misery? ' ' we're high fashion, and we're last chances. ' ' i am indifferent, yet i am a total wreck. ' ' i'm every cliche, but i simply do it best. ' ' i went to sleep a poet, and i woke up a fraud. ' ' to calm your nerves, i was feeling for my clothes in the dark. '

MY HEART IS THE WORST KIND OF WEAPON (DEMO)

taken from the YA series by maggie stiefvater. some alterations made as needed to make things fit better for rp. feel free to change pronouns, etc.

taken from the 2022 album. feel free to change pronouns, etc.

KING

‘ we’re always arguing about whether to have children, about the world ending, and the scale of my ambition, and how much is art really worth? ’ ‘ how much is art really worth? ’ ‘ the very thing you’re best at is the thing that hurts the most. ’ ‘ you need your rotten heart. your dazzling pain, like diamond rings. ’ ‘ i need to go to war to find material to sing. ’ ‘ i am no mother. i am no bride; i am king. ’ ‘ i need my golden crown of sorrow, my bloody sword to swing, my empty halls to echo with grand self-mythology. ’ ‘ a woman is a changeling, always shifting shape. ’ ‘ just when you think you have it figured out, something new begins to take. ’ ‘ i never knew my killer would be coming from within. ’ ‘ i was never as good as i always thought i was, but i knew how to dress it up. ’ ‘ i was never satisfied. ’ ‘ it never let me go, just dragged me by my hair. ’

FREE

‘ sometimes, i wonder if i should be medicated. if i would feel better just lightly sedated. ’ ‘ i can’t control it. ’ ‘ i’m on fire, but i’m trying not to show it. ’ ‘ i’m always running from something. ’ ‘ i push it back, but it keeps on coming. ’ ‘ being clever never got me very far. ’ ‘ it’s all in my head. ’ ‘ you’re too sensitive. ’ ‘ “you’re too sensitive,” they said. ’ ‘ okay, but let’s discuss this at the hospital. ’ ‘ for a moment, when i’m dancing, i am free. ’ ‘ is this how it is? is this how it’s always been? ’ ‘ is this how it’s always been? to exist in the face of suffering and death, and somehow still keep singing? ’ ‘ don’t you wanna call it off? ’ ‘ there’s nothing else that i know how to do but to open up my arms and give it all to you. ’

CHOREOMANIA

‘ i’m freaking out in the middle of the street. ’ ‘ i don’t know how it started. i don’t know how to stop it. ’ ‘ something’s coming. ’ ‘ i danced myself to death. ’ ‘ this is the end. ’ ‘ do they speak to you? cause they speak to me, too. ’ ‘ you said that rock and roll is dead. but is that just because it has not been resurrected in your image? ’

BACK IN TOWN

‘ i’ve never really been alive before. i always lived in my head. ’ ‘ sometimes it was easier to be hungover and half-dead. ’ ‘ i’m back in town. why don’t we go out? ’ ‘ why don’t we go to that ninth street diner? ’ ‘ why don’t we go out to that ninth street diner and carry on slowly, torturing each other? ’ ‘ i came for the pleasure, but i stayed for the pain. ’ ‘ if you get spat on, that’s just your big city baptism. ’ ‘ why don’t we go out and never go to sleep? ’ ‘ we’ll throw our dreams out, let them pile up on the streets. ’ ‘ i thought that i was here with you, but it was always just an empty room. ’

GIRLS AGAINST GOD

‘ when someone looks at me with real love, i don’t like it very much. it makes me feel like i’m being crushed. ’ ‘ is this something that you would like to discuss? ’ ‘ it’s good to be alive. ’ ‘ it’s good to be alive, crying into cereal at midnight. ’ ‘ if they ever let me out, i’m gonna really let it out. ’ ‘ oh god, you’re gonna get it. ’ ‘ you’ll be sorry that you messed with this. ’ ‘ remember being in that basement? ’ ‘ everyone treated us like little pets. ’ ‘ tell me it’s not over yet. ’ ‘ in my darkest fantasies, i am the picture of passivity. ’ ‘ i’m suppressing all my private rage. ’ ‘ when i decided to wage holy war, it looked very much like staring at my bedroom floor. ’ ‘ i may not look like much... ’ ‘ i met the devil, you know. he gave me a choice: a golden heart, or a golden voice. ’

DREAM GIRL EVIL

‘ did you miss me? ’ ‘ did you walk on water just to kiss me? ’ ‘ come and get me. ’ ‘ drag me out, destroy me. ’ ‘ i’ve been expecting you. ’ ‘ i’m ready. ’ ‘ deliver me the bad news. ’ ‘ am i your dream girl? ’ ‘ do you think of me in bed? ’ ‘ you could never hold me. ’ ‘ make me evil, then i’m an angel instead. ’ ‘ at least you’ll sanctify me when i’m dead. ’ ‘ did i disappoint you? ’ ‘ do i just remind you of every girl that made you mad? ’ ‘ make me perfect, make me your fantasy. you know i deserve it, so take it out on me. ’ ‘ i am nobody’s moral center. ’

PRAYER FACTORY

‘ all the things that i ran from, i now bring as close to me as i can. ’ ‘ why don’t you give me a call? ’ ‘ yes, i’ll take it all. ’ ‘ all this work has gone to waste. ’ ‘ you made me climb, and then you shut the gate. ’

CASSANDRA

‘ i used to see the future, and now i see nothing. ’ ‘ they cut out my eyes and sent me home packing. ’ ‘ i pace around the kitchen for scraps of inspiration. ’ ‘ i used to tell the future, but they cut out my tongue and left me doing laundry to think on what i’d done. ’ ‘ i used to move into the future and bring it all back. ’ ‘ they put crosses on the doors to try and keep me out. ’ ‘ can you see me? ’ ‘ everything i thought i knew has fallen  out of view. ’ ‘ can you hear me? ’ ‘ there’s no one left to sing to. ’ ‘ all the gods have been domesticated, and heaven is now overrated. ’ ‘ you can take your complaints straight to the lord. ’ ‘ i try to still look with wonder on the world as the roses bloom, though the riot van is still plainly in view. ’ ‘ take me back. ’ ‘ if i run fast enough, could i break apart as empires crumble and cathedrals flatten in my heart? ’

HEAVEN IS HERE

‘ bring your cigarette. ’ ‘ heaven is here, if you want it. ’ ‘ heaven is here. ’ ‘ bring your boy. ’ ‘ bring your bottle. ’ ‘ i went to the water, drank every drop. ’ ‘ i’ll turn your sea into a desert. ’ ‘ yes, i’m your girl. ’ ‘ if it glitters, i’m going. ’ ‘ time stretches, endless. ’ ‘ you know i always get my man. ’

DAFFODIL

‘ i couldn’t help it. ’ ‘ i let it get in: the helpless optimism of spring. ’ ‘ the world’s bent double from weeping, and yet the birds begin to sing. ’ ‘ i’m not bad. i’m not good. ’ ‘ i made myself mythical, and tried to be real. ’ ‘ we practice resurrection every night, raising the dead under the moonlight. ’ ‘ you’re a perfect pearl hung in the sky. ’ ‘ there is no bad, there is no good. ’ ‘ kiss my face and tell me that i’m the chosen one. ’ ‘ a generation soaked in grief, and now we’re drying out and hanging on by the skin of our teeth. ’ ‘ i never thought that it would get this far. ’ ‘ sometimes, i see so much beauty, i don’t think that i can cope. ’

MY LOVE

‘ i was always able to write my way out. ’ ‘ now i find that when i look down, every page is empty. ’ ‘ there is nothing to describe, except the moon still bright against the worrying sky. ’ ‘ tell me where to put my love. do i wait for time to do what it does? ’ ‘ i don’t know where to put my love. ’ ‘ when it came, it was stranger than i had ever imagined. ’ ‘ all my friends are getting ill. ’ ‘ my arms emptied, the skies emptied, the billboards emptied. ’

RESTRAINT

‘ have i learned restraint? ’ ‘ am i quiet enough for you yet? ’

THE BOMB

‘ you said this could have been the best thing that ever happened to you... so you decided not to do it. ’ ‘ you come back every summer like a carnivorous flower, and i stare at your hands in the heat, and i think they are the most beautiful thing i’ve ever seen. ’ ‘ if i was free to love you, you wouldn’t want me, would you? ’ ‘ unavailability is the only thing that turns you on. come here, baby, tell me that i’m wrong. ’ ‘ come here, baby. tell me that i’m wrong. ’ ‘ i’ve blown apart my life for you. ’ ‘ break me, shake me, devastate me. ’ ‘ i don’t love you. ’ ‘ i let it burn, but it just had to be done. ’ ‘ i’m in ruins, but is it what i wanted all along? ’

MORNING ELVIS

add “+ REVERSE” to reverse the roles

taken from the album by fun. feel free to change pronouns, etc.

BE CALM

' my back is feeling much better. ' ' i reclaimed the use of my imagination. for better or for worse, i've yet to know. ' ' i always knew you'd be the one to understand me. ' ' why haven't you been there for me? ' ' can't you see? i'm losing my mind this time. ' ' i think they want something. ' ' be calm. ' ' be calm. i know you feel like you're breaking down. ' ' i know that it gets hard sometimes. ' ' i'm scared that everyone is out to get me. ' ' these days, before you speak to me, you pause. ' ' i always see you looking out your window. ' ' you lost your band, you left your mom. ' ' with every single buck i've made, i'm saddled with bad luck that came. ' ' if only i could find my people, or my place in life. ' ' take it from me, i've been there a thousand times: you hate your pulse because it thinks you're still alive. ' ' everything's wrong. ' ' it just gets so hard sometimes. ' ' i don't remember much that night, just walking, thinking fondly of you. ' ' i'm thinking of how the worst is yet to come. '

BENSON HEDGES

‘ if the lord is gonna find me, he’d better start looking today. ’ ‘ you’ll never guess what she did when she got home. ’ ‘ at least the birds are singing to me. ’ ‘ you’re beautiful. ’ ‘ for all your big mistakes, you stayed the same. ’ ‘ i’ll drive until we both break down. ’ ‘ i was stranded in a border town. ’ ‘ i’ve come to find that i can’t be defined. ’ ‘ we all float before we sink. ’ ‘ i don’t care to be forgiven. ’ ‘ i want to be forgotten. ’ ‘ i don’t care to be forgiven when i only want to be forgotten. ’ ‘ i received a call from my family. ’ ‘ they think i’m beautiful for all my big mistakes. ’ ‘ you’re beautiful for all your big mistakes. ’

ALL THE PRETTY GIRLS

‘ i called your name. ’ ‘ i don’t think straight. ’ ‘ i don’t want to say i’m leaving. i’ll stay until the weekend. ’ ‘ i’ve been waiting for all the pretty girls. ’ ‘ come to me with that look in your eyes. ’ ‘ you break and take all the words from my mouth. ’ ‘ i call you out just to feel a little bit better about myself. ’ ‘ i really get it. you know i do. ’ ‘ i’ve never heard the tune. ’ ‘ i just hate the band because they remind me of you. ’ ‘ every single night ends the same. ’ ‘ i don’t say much at all, but i bring up your name over and over. ’ ‘ you still wear boots, and your hair is long. ’ ‘ you don’t want to admit you’re falling in love. ’ ‘ all the pretty girls can’t measure to you. ’ ‘ i don’t understand your reasons. ’ ‘ please, just stay over the weekend. ’ ‘ all those things, they define you and me, everything we’ve become. ’ ‘ you’re all that i need. ’ ‘ i feel your faith is destroying the world. ’ ‘ she never really understood the eighties is over. ’

I WANNA BE THE ONE

‘ all the muscles in my mouth never smiled or said profound things. ’ ‘ look at all the steps you’ve taken and all you’ve overcome. ’ ‘ bring me a cake. ’ ‘ you’re my human holiday. ’ ‘ i’ll put my hands to the table and dare to say “the love of my life.” ‘ ‘ i want to put it in a song and make it last forever. ’ ‘ clever comes in truth, when truth begets the past. ’ ‘ the moon can see the beauty that surrounds your heart as it pounds. ’ ‘ i want to be the one. ’

AT LEAST I'M NOT AS SAD (AS I USED TO BE)

‘ have you ever wondered about our old friends and what became of them? ’ ‘ they were laughing, and drinking, and smoking and singing on. ’ ‘ can you count all the notches in your belt? ’ ‘ i’d rather not. ’ ‘ i don’t want a savior, baby, i just want to have a good time. ’ ‘ at least i’m not as sad as i used to be. ’ ‘ it’s been a while. ’ ‘ where are you going to stay? ’ ‘ you should’ve seen me a couple of years ago. ’ ‘ can you count all the loves that didn’t last? ’ ‘ i just want to get it out. ’ ‘ that’s my life. ’ ‘ nothing is sacred. ’ ‘ i don’t keep friends, i keep acquainted. ’ ‘ i’m not a prophet, but i’m here to prophet. ’ ‘ that’s all, i’m gone. ’ ‘ i don’t fall in love. ’ ‘ i don’t fall in love, i just fake it. ’

LIGHT A ROMAN CANDLE WITH ME

‘ light a roman candle with me. ’ ‘ i’ll pour you just one cup of tea, then you can go and rest. ’ ‘ you haven’t seen my best. ’ ‘ just... spend an evening with me. ’ ‘ spend an evening with me. just a lazy evening, then you could be leaving—or we could stay and talk until three. ’ ‘ i think it’s magic. ’ ‘ we owe it to ourselves to try. ’ ‘ give me a chance. ’ ‘ it’s not often that i understand the ins and outs of what’s wrong and what’s right. ’ ‘ don’t think of tomorrow tonight. ’ ‘ i know it goes on, it gets old, but for now we’re young. ’ ‘ i’m looking for common ground. ’ ‘ your heart isn’t breaking, and mine isn’t making a sound. ’

WALKING THE DOG

‘ the night is dead. ’ ‘ it crossed my mind when i crossed the bridge how you lost your mind, how your wrists got bruised. ’ ‘ you wanted a better love. ’ ‘ you want a better love? well, it’s sleeping in your bedroom. ’ ‘ hold up, stay on my side, don’t go. ’ ‘ if you could see me, whoever i am, it’s not like a movie. ’ ‘ come on, love. i will not let you go. ’ ‘ i’d call you up so we could shoot the moon, but these days i’m left to howl in tune. ’ ‘ i think i really only cried once. ’ ‘ i always thought from the start that i’d be the one moving on. ’ ‘ i’ll miss what we made. ’ ‘ the dreams were not wasted. ’ ‘ there are some things i may never know. ’

BARLIGHTS

‘ never in all my life have i seen eyes so empty. ’ ‘ the green of your eyes say “go. leave it all behind.” ‘ ‘ i don’t need to be reminded that a change is going to come. ’ ‘ i don’t need to be reminded that a change is gonna come. i can feel it on the tip of your tongue. ’ ‘ i feel alive. ’ ‘ we could use some sleep. ’ ‘ sleep to the superfluous man means better use for beds, but i’ll bet i’m coming home alone tonight. ’ ‘ i don’t need to be reminded that this is how it is. ’ ‘ i moved on. ’ ‘ i had too much. ’ ‘ truth is, i’m just getting started. ’ ‘ they call us all sheep. well, i’m the little bo peep of the bunch. ’ ‘ i’ve gotta take this call. ’ ‘ i’m scared you’re going to leave me too soon. ’ ‘ we were the get-rich-quick kids, we never got it right. ’ ‘ he lived fast, but he died. me? i’m gonna live forever. ’ ‘ i think i’m gonna live forever. ’ ‘ for the first time in a long time, i feel alive. ’

THE GAMBLER

‘ slow down. ’ ‘ slow down, we’ve got time left to be lazy. ’ ‘ we’ve got fifty good years left to spend out in the garden. ’ ‘ we should live until we die. ’ ‘ it was cold, but it got warm when you barely crossed my eye. ’ ‘ i knew nothing of romance, but it was love at second sight. ’ ‘ i won’t just buy you a rose. i’ll buy the flower shop, and you will never be lonely. ’ ‘ even if the sun stops waking up over the fields, i will not leave. ’ ‘ i will not leave until it’s our time. ’ ‘ take my hand. you know that i will never leave your side. ’ ‘ he thinks just like his mother. ’ ‘ you have eyes just like your father’s. ’ ‘ you swore that you’d be here until we decided it’s our time. but it’s not time, you’ve never quit in all your life. ’ ‘ you’re the love of my life. ’ ‘ the kids are coming home. ’ ‘ i’ll set the table; you can make the fire. ’

TAKE YOUR TIME (COMING HOME)

‘ take your time coming home. ’ ‘ let your lungs fill up with smoke. ’ ‘ forgive everyone. ’ ‘ we had plans. ’ ‘ it’s a beautiful thing when you love somebody. and i love somebody. ’ ‘ i don’t think i’ve been misled. ’ ‘ i’m still standing. ’ ‘ of everyone who called, very few said “we believe in you.” ‘ ‘ if it’s true, then what the fuck have i been doing the last six years? ’ ‘ how did i end up here? ’ ‘ how’d i find love and conquer all of my fears? ’ ‘ the truth is, i feel better because i’ve forgiven everyone. ’ ‘ now, i feel like i am home. ’ ‘ one more thing: i keep having this dream. ’ ‘ i don’t know what it means. ’ ‘ for every love that’s lost, i heard a new one comes. ’ ‘ sing along with me. ’ ‘ if you love somebody, you’d better let them know. ’ ‘ don’t ever let this go. ’

STITCH ME UP

‘ i’m not looking for a reason to go. ’ ‘ put the keys in the car and drive. i’m gonna make sure the money is right. ’ ‘ if i lose you, i’m losing control. ’ ‘ pull the trigger. ’ ‘ i figure we’re better as ghosts. ’ ‘ i’ll find somebody who will stitch me up. ’ ‘ i’ve never been better than when i’m falling apart. ’ ‘ it’s gonna come back tenfold. ’ ‘ darling, i don’t think that we’ll make it out alive. ’ ‘ i don’t think that we’ll make it out alive. ’ ‘ we won’t make it out alive. ’ ‘ i’m lost with each passing day. ’ ‘ if you’re coming, then come quick. ’ ‘ i’m scared i’m floating away. ’

WALKING THE DOG II