Permitted Development

[Verse 1]
(A cappella, layered vocal harmony)
We carry the keys on a snapped-off carabiner
We learned the vocabulary for a life we've never seen, yeah
(Beat drops)
The 20:41 from Lewisham sighs to a stop at the platform.
Chip-shop vinegar stings the air, keeping the night warm.
We trace the skyline's jagged seam, all that glass and wire,
A promise fired in a kiln too far away to acquire.

[Pre-Chorus]
Past the council signs forbidding ball games on the green,
Past the window where the light's a shade of cheap caffeine.
Three locks on the door, one for every year we've been.

[Chorus]
This is our permitted development.
A life built in the margins, heaven-sent and heaven-spent.
We weave a home from what was left,
This is our permitted development.

[Verse 2]
Your degree is a placemat for a mug with a hairline fracture.
My CV's a study in municipal architecture.
The sound of frying onions bleeds through the plasterboard thin,
You mouth, "they promised us the blueprint" with a patient, crooked grin.

[Pre-Chorus]
Past the council signs forbidding ball games on the green,
Past the window where the light's a shade of cheap caffeine.
Three locks on the door, one for every year we've been.

[Chorus]
This is our permitted development.
A life built in the margins, heaven-sent and heaven-spent.
We weave a home from what was left,
This is our permitted development.

[Bridge]
The scaffolding's down, the final glaze is set and cool.
We're not bitter, just observant of the measure and the rule.

[Outro]
The hum of the fridge, a floorboard's gentle give.
Yeah, this is how we live.