The Artifice

So proud of the girl I became
I'm the greatest pretender
When the sky opened up for the rain
It just drowned down the ember
It's hard to stay lit these days

Swore right up to my knees
My belief was in bold letters
But the pang in my gut tried and true
Tied my unruly laces together
And I tripped as I laid out the faith

It's an act spun in spit these days

And we know this artifice
Isn't worth its weight in the vertigo
That started this
The players are buckled and bruised
The pieces are saying the game doesn't really exist
It's a whole lot to lose
But it's the catalyst

Suspicion is stacked to ceiling
They're dealing now down to the quarters
But the heaviest prize they defend
Chokes and dies on these shoulders
It's hard to stay put these days

Souvenirs of escapists
They've scattered the pages
The pride's in insistence
Beat the rush of the fight
As you lay on the knives of indifference
It pulls from what's left of the chase

The fretter's on foot these days

And we know the stake in this
It doesn't hold its place
When the end-be-all is facing us
Left with tatters of hope
What besides that is even proven real

It's a steal from the starving
But it's a hell of a steal
(Take what you can)
It's a hell of a steal
(and take what you can)
It's a hell of steal
(now you take what you can)
It's a hell of a steal