[Verse 1] Phone in your hand, thumb doing the work Child by your side still asking “are we going or what?” You say “one more minute” without looking up Not ‘cause you’re busy — ‘cause you already know what’s coming up [Pre-Chorus] That little voice cuts deeper than it should ‘Cause you heard it too, back when you were stood Waiting on someone who never came through And now it’s you… doing what they used to do [Chorus] You stay on the screen so you don’t have to feel The way their need is showing you what you still carry still If you put it down you’ll have to see The kid you were is standing right in front of me So you scroll a little longer, make another excuse While the trauma adds up in the quiet of the room It ain’t about the phone — it’s the mirror in their eyes And you’re scared of what you’ll find if you actually try [Verse 2] They don’t want the playground more than they want you But you keep them waiting ‘cause the waiting feels true Familiar. Safe. The same old dance You learned it young — now you’re teaching it by chance [Pre-Chorus] Every “just a sec” is a shield you raise So you don’t have to feel the old ache in your chest But they feel it for you… and they feel it for them Two generations learning how not to begin [Chorus] You stay on the screen so you don’t have to feel The future you wanted staring back at you for real The dad you wished you had is the one you could be But it costs the comfort of your own injury So the scroll keeps spinning, the minutes turn to hours And the trust you’re breaking is the same that was ours [Bridge – stripped, spoken almost] I know why you do it I did it too The screen is easier than facing what we never got through But every time we choose it The wound just gets deeper For them… and for the version of us that’s still a believer [Final Chorus – shift, quieter then building] So put it down Even if it stings Even if you feel the old boy in you start to flinch ‘Cause the future you wanted ain’t on that screen It’s standing right here asking you to be seen You don’t have to be perfect You just have to choose To stop passing the waiting you were forced to lose [Outro] The trauma adds up either way But only one choice makes it fade Put it down… Be here. That’s the only screen that ever saved.
