You Don't Have to Come Out

They keep asking where you've been Like the world is owed an answer Like a life behind a curtain Isn't really living at all You hear footsteps in the hallway Then you wait until they're gone If that room is where you're breathing Stay there as long as you want You don't owe the morning your face You don't owe the crowd your name You don't have to come out You don't have to show them who you are You don't have to take one step Into a world that feels too far Stay inside your little room Leave the curtains where they are You don't disappear Just because they cannot see you I know You're still there Everybody loves to tell you How a shell is meant to break How a bird must leave its shelter How a heart must learn to brave But what if you are tired Of becoming something more? What if being here and breathing Is enough for now? You don't owe them a transformation You don't have to prove you're alive You don't have to come out You don't have to show them who you are You don't have to take one step Into a world that feels too far Stay inside your little room Leave the curtains where they are You don't disappear Just because they cannot see you I know You're still there And if the shell never breaks Listen to me You won't die inside You won't vanish from this earth You won't become less real with time Because somewhere on the other side Someone remembers you're alive I do I do I do So let the whole world Keep on moving Let it run Let it rush You don't have to Run with it You don't have to come out Not tonight Not tomorrow You don't have to make yourself A little easier to find And if the whole world passes by Without ever knowing your name Let it pass Let it pass You will still be here You will still matter You will still be you And I— I will remember Even if nobody sees you I will I will I know you're still there Keep the door closed If you need to I'll leave the light on Out here