Still Want Love

I've been holding up the walls of this house

Talking to echoes that never talk back

Every "I'm fine" just buys me another night

Where nobody asks what I lost

I gave the calm, I gave the fight

I gave my voice to keep the peace at night

But I still want love

Not the half-light kind that hides behind duty

I still want love

The kind that sees me when I stop performing beauty

Still want love

Even after all this

She said I'm hard to feel safe around

I said I forgot what safety feels like

We keep building bridges out of glass

And then bleeding when we try to cross

I keep my heart in a quiet place

Afraid of the noise it used to make

But I still want love

Not the version I earn through pain or penance

I still want love

The kind that doesn't vanish when the room gets tense

Still want love

Even after all this

Don't need forgiveness to keep me whole

Just someone who knows my soul

And stays

When the noise fades

And the world forgets my name

I still want love

The kind that looks me in the eyes and stays

I still want love

Even if it never comes my way

Still want love

Still want love