Echoes and Ashes Alternative Version

You held my hand so tight, love was a reckless ride Passionate fire burns, until it's hollow inside Lyrics built us up, songs we both adored Turned to bitter symphonies, melodies ignored Our fortress fell apart, walls tumbling to the ground Echoes of forever, but forever's not around Thought love was diamond-hard, unbreakable But your words like hammers fell, undeniable I once stood tall, so fearless and erect Now I'm just a silhouette, what did you expect? Eyes once bright, now dim reflections at best And scars now wear your face What did you expect? What did you expect? If you can't respect, then just disconnect And if it's all a jest, watch me as I defect I am shattered glass, won't fit in your frame Old photos in the trash, memories we can’t retrieve In these empty rooms, watch a lonely heart grieve You emptied your love like bottles on a shelf Left me wondering if I ever knew myself [Chorus] Now I’m picking up pieces, on my own, rebound Learning to stand in the space where we were found In the silence post-storm, it's a solemn sound Pages of 'us' getting torn, our story's underground Bridges torched in your wake, smoke filling skies Love's remnants faded, all the heartfelt lies [Verse 2] Eyes that once would pierce, now they glance aside Words that used to sing, now just tongues that tied Chasing ghosts of you, through the crowded streets All these memories, like fallen leaves under my feet Bumper to bumper, our dreams crash in disarray With every sunset, watch our colors fade to gray [Pre-Chorus] And oh, the rhythm's gone, our beat's out of time Like an unfinished lyric, a song without a rhyme