Stress Test

[Verse 1]
(Speaker 1)
Ardwick office, Tuesday, quarter past three, the air's gone stale.
Fluorescent hum's a constant B flat, scratching on the nail.
My girl is tracing patterns on the condensation, breathing low.
See the stress fractures spiderweb the plaster, 'just for show'.
(Speaker 2)
"He's not even looked up from his screen yet, check the state of that."
His tie's a polyester noose, his posture's slumped and flat.
(Speaker 1)
We're just another column in his ledger, another box to tick.
Another redbrick terrace with a faulty fuse, another dirty trick.

[Pre-Chorus]
(Speaker 1)
And I'm holding the breath, checking the torsion in the spine,
reading the blueprint of his judgment in every single line
on the form, DH5, a test of the structural grace,
the load-bearing smile I gotta keep pinned right on my face...

[Chorus]
(Speaker 1)
We build the scaffold up with pleasantries and teeth held tight.
Just to ask for basic decency, another pointless fight.
They say the system's working... right.
We just keep holding on with exhausted hope and fading light.

[Verse 2]
(Speaker 1)
He calls my name out wrong, a subtle shearing on the vowel sound.
I walk the chalk line to the counter, don't you make a sound.
His gaze is gliding past my shoulder, landing on the clock.
Every question's weighted, tryna find the give, the slip, the shock.
(Speaker 2)
"Did you hear that? 'What efforts have you made?' He's read the script."
The condescension's dripping, I can feel my own restraint get ripped.
(Speaker 1)
But the facade stays perfect, polished aggregate and steel.
"Been applying daily," through the teeth, I make the whole lie feel real.

[Pre-Chorus]
(Speaker 1)
And I'm holding the breath, checking the torsion in the spine,
reading the blueprint of his judgment in every single line
on the form, DH5, a test of the structural grace,
the load-bearing smile I gotta keep pinned right on my face...

[Chorus]
(Speaker 1)
We build the scaffold up with pleasantries and teeth held tight.
Just to ask for basic decency, another pointless fight.
They say the system's working... right.
We just keep holding on with exhausted hope and fading light.

[Bridge]
(Speaker 1 & 2)
This support structure's a cage, mate.
Designed for failure, sealed by fate.

[Outro]
(Speaker 1)
Back on the pavement, the Mancunian rain feels clean.
Reset the braces. Same scene, new scene.