Faded Ink on Cotton

[Intro]
[Verse]
Three AM in the neon glow
Watching all the spin cycles go
Detergent clouds in the humid air
I’m still stuck in this swivel chair
Static crackles on the tape deck
Cold coffee on the back of my neck
[Pre-Chorus]
Found a relic in the bottom bin
Where the ghosts of the weekend spin
A black tee with a tour date
Left behind by a twist of fate
[Chorus]
Faded ink on cotton blue
A seven-digit ghost of you
Should I call or should I wait?
Heavy hearts are out of date
In the hum of the machine
You’re the ghost I’ve never seen
[Verse]
Scrawled in Sharpie on the inner hem
A secret kept from all of them
The four is blurred, the nine is thin
Tracing where your skin has been
Smells like lavender and cheap smoke
A story told before it broke
[Chorus]
Faded ink on cotton blue
A seven-digit ghost of you
Should I call or should I wait?
Heavy hearts are out of date
In the hum of the machine
You’re the ghost I’ve never seen
[Bridge]
Sub-bass thrumming like a train
Washing out the summer rain
Twenty-seven years of silence
Love is such a quiet violence
I fold the sleeves and hit the light
Praying you walk in tonight
[Post-Chorus]
Spinning in the dark
Waiting for a spark
Just a phantom trace
In this empty space
[Verse]
The open sign begins to blink
Staring at the faded ink
Maybe you’re just blocks away
Dreaming of a better day
I’ll keep the shirt upon the shelf
A little secret for myself
[Chorus]
Faded ink on cotton blue
A seven-digit ghost of you
Should I call or should I wait?
Heavy hearts are out of date
In the hum of the machine
You’re the ghost I’ve never seen
[Outro]