[Intro]

[Fingerpicked acoustic guitar]

[Heavy Breathing Voice] "The weight is heavy on my chest

Still breathing in, but nothing left"

[Strong and Hopeful] "Just this one simple, stubborn plea:

Don't let the darkness take hold of me."

[Verse 1]

Sunrise paints the window pane, same gray as yesterday

Another mile on the weary train, no easy path or way

The weight of the world sits on my chest, a blanket made of stone

But I whisper a secret, put it to the test: [Whisper] "Hope, Oh you're not alone"

You're the thread I'm hanging onto, fine as spider silk

The only reason that I still do, what my broken spirit built.

[Pre-Chorus: Music swells slightly]

'Cause the air is thin up on this ledge, and the ground is miles below

I've walked so close to the ragged edge, but I just can't let it go

It's the only thing that keeps the gears, turning in my mind

A shield against the gathering fears, I'll never leave behind.

[Chorus: Music hits strong and powerful]

Oh, Hope, you are the fuel (the fuel) for the fire I tend (I tend)

The promise of a future (a Future) that knows no end (no end)

I cling to your light (your light), 'cause the dark is too deep (too deep)

A silent vow (silent Vow) that my soul tries to Keep (to keep)

Day after day after day (every day), I walk the line (walk the line)

'Cause you're the last light (last light) that still tries to shine (to shine)

The final, fragile thing (fagile thing) that keeps me here (keeps me here).

Washing away (Washing away) the salt of every tear (every Tear).

[Verse 2]

I remember the words that you told me then, spoken soft and true

The future was built for us, my friend, and all that we could do

You gave me a hand to pull me out, of the deepest, darkest well

I never had a single doubt, when I fell under your spell

But the hand slipped away like a mist in the dawn, the promise turned to dust

The golden future is long gone, betrayed by simple trust.

[Pre-Chorus: Music pulls back, more sparse and bitter]

And it cuts deeper than any knife, the realization strikes

That the anchor I'd thrown into my life, was pulled up in the night

You didn't need a single thing, you only took the chance

To clip the hopeful little wing, and leave me in this trance.

[Chorus: driving rhythm]

Oh, Hope, you are the fuel (the fuel) for the fire I tend (I tend)

The promise of a future (a Future) that knows no end (no end)

I cling to your light (your light), 'cause the dark is too deep (too deep)

A silent vow (silent Vow) that my soul tries to Keep (to keep)

Day after day after day (every day), I walk the line (walk the line)

'Cause you're the last light (last light) that still tries to shine (to shine)

The final, fragile thing (fagile thing) that keeps me here (keeps me here).

Washing away (Washing away) the salt of every tear (every Tear).

[Bridge: Tempo slows dramatically]

How many times can you rebuild the wall, when the wrecking ball is free?

How many times can you watch it fall, and still believe in "we"?

I’m tired of sweeping up the shards, of every shattered dream

Reading fortunes on the playing cards, by the light of a dying gleam.

But even when the well runs dry, and the sun refuses to rise,

There’s a foolish voice that will not die, behind these weary eyes.

[Verse 3]

I look in the mirror and who do I see? A ghost of who I was

Still running on sheer tenacity, defying all the laws

Of gravity and broken things, a constant uphill fight

Chasing the shadow that hope often brings, through the unforgiving night

Maybe I'm the one who hurts it most, by giving it away

Offering up my precious ghost, for a brighter, better day.

[Pre-Chorus: Music builds intensely]

But the alternative is chilling cold, a blank and empty page

To surrender the story never told, and exit from the stage

So I cup my hands around the flame, a flicker in the breeze

Whispering its holy, fragile name, down on my weary knees.

[Chorus: Powerful and defiant]

Oh, Hope, you are the fuel (the fuel) for the fire I tend (I tend)

The promise of a future (a Future) that knows no end (no end)

I cling to your light (your light), 'cause the dark is too deep (too deep)

A silent vow (silent Vow) that my soul tries to Keep (to keep)

Day after day after day (every day), I walk the line (walk the line)

'Cause you're the last light (last light) that still tries to shine (to shine)

The final, fragile thing (fagile thing) that keeps me here (keeps me here).

Washing away (Washing away) the salt of every tear (every Tear).

[Bridge: Music drops out, just vocals]

And when you slip, I know the sting, the silence when you're gone

It's the death of every future thing, before the break of dawn.

But I will find a single spark, buried deep within the ash

And drag myself back from the dark, in one defiant dash.

[Outro: Music fades slowly]

[Soft Voice] Day after day

[Quiet Voice] The last light

[Whisper] I still tend the fire

[Silence]