The Exchange

[Intro] This for that Heat for the nerve Motion for meaning Whatever it was worth [Verse 1] It gave me a mouth full of light A body I could mistake for brave A room that opened easy And a way to stay unclaimed It gave me noise enough To drown the slower things A borrowed kind of power A clean excuse to disappear inside my skin It gave me charm It gave me speed It gave me hands that never had to stay still long enough To feel what they were holding [Pre-Chorus] And it took So quietly I almost called it love I almost called it me [Chorus] The exchange That’s what it was beneath the shine The exchange A little heat for a little life The exchange It gave me just enough to stay And took more than I could name Every time [Verse 2] It took the center out of things Left the outline running fine Took the weight out of a kiss Took the witness from the eyes Took the morning in small pieces Till the day felt second-hand Took the part of me that used to turn Toward love without a plan It took sleep It took trust It took whole hours I still can’t place And left the body standing there Like that was somehow enough [Pre-Chorus] And I let it Because the room stayed warm Because the blood stayed loud Because the dark looked better dressed that way [Chorus] The exchange That’s what it was beneath the shine The exchange A little heat for a little life The exchange It gave me just enough to stay And took more than I could name Every time [Bridge] No devil in it No grand design Just appetite And the shape of a lie Just one thing traded For another thing Again and again Till the cost stopped feeling like a cost And started feeling like home [Final Chorus] The exchange That’s what it was all along The exchange A little glow with the center gone The exchange It gave me just enough to stay And took more than I could name Every time [Outro] This for that Heat for the nerve Motion for meaning Whatever it was worth