Lyric

I held the room in my teeth

Kept the hurt out of sight

I was easy to read

And hard to know at night

Every laugh had a job

Every nod had a cost

I was glowing for them

Till the glow got lost

And I stayed in the frame

Like a line I could play

But my hands went numb

When they looked away

After the smile comes off

I come back to me

After the smile comes off

I can finally breathe

No more shining for them

No more little disguise

After the smile comes off

There’s my real life

I knew all the right words

Kept them polished and small

I could cover the cracks

Like they weren’t there at all

But the quiet got loud

When the door shut slow

And the face in the glass

Was the one I know

So I let the pose fall down

Let the gold fade thin

If you want the truth

That’s where I begin

After the smile comes off

I come back to me

After the smile comes off

I can finally breathe

No more shining for them

No more little disguise

After the smile comes off

There’s my real life

It’s not a wound to hide

It’s the shape of my day

All that borrowed light

Can be given away

So I sit with the ache

Let it move like a wave

I don’t need to perform

To be soft, to be brave

After the smile comes off

I come back to me

After the smile comes off

I can finally breathe

No more shining for them

No more little disguise

After the smile comes off

There’s my real life

After the smile comes off

I don’t run, I stay

After the smile comes off

I can feel my way