So Long...

[Intro]
[Acoustic guitar and synth pad, soft male vocal]
Steps in the hallway, suitcase by the door
Morning filter through the kitchen, echo on the floor
Father: Shoes side by side, lined up for years
Son: Now mine will carry me, far from here

[Verse 1]
Father: Coffee cooling, words come slow
Hands in pockets, nowhere left to go
Son: Map in my pocket, papers in hand
Father: Wonder when we stopped speaking as men
Son: I chase new hope, you hold the land

[Pre-Chorus]
(Both, softly)
Breath between words, pause in the air
Heartbeat stumbles, too much to bear

[Chorus]
(Both)
The language may change
But blood never fades
Eyes lock—a kiss without lips
Scars that never scar

[Post-Chorus]
(Ad-lib: la, la, la – aahh, la)
Looking back, moving on

[Verse 2]
Son: Ticket in my palm, name on the line
Father: Every mile you go, you’ll still be mine
Son: Faces and signs I can barely read
Father: I stayed to give you every simple need
Son: Cold morning train, waiting for me
Father: Will you remember the home that’s free?

[Pre-Chorus]
(Both)
Room in my heart, seat in the sun
Still the same blood, still the same one

[Chorus]
(Both, stronger)
The language may change
But blood never fades
Eyes lock—a kiss without lips
Scars that never scar

[Post-Chorus]
(Ad-lib: oh, la, la)
Lines on the map, but not in our names

[Solo]
[Guitar solo with wordless “ohhh”s woven in reverb]

[Bridge]
(Male duet, overlapping, building)
Son: Why do we all fly so far?
Father: Why does the leaving make us who we are?
Son: Every goodbye, like a bird in flight
Father: Bringing the day from the heart of the night

[Chorus: Modulated key, full harmonies]
(Both, powerful, unified)
The language may change
Still the bond remains
Eyes lock—a kiss without lips
Scars that never scar

[Outro]
[Fading guitar, soft la’s]
We send our words across the line
Different lands, the same old sign
(la, la, la)