To My Cousin

Lyrics

I still hear your laugh in the hallway air
Like a ghost with a heartbeat, gone too fast, too rare
Emma, my favorite, yeah, you knew that spot
Now I stare at your name like it’s all I got
Family photos lean on a dusty shelf
I smile for the room, but I’m losing myself
Mama say time heals, but it cuts first
Every memory backfires, makes the wound hurt worse

And I miss you in the quiet, miss you in the rain
Miss the way you said my name and made the bad days change
If love could keep you here, you’d still be by my side
But grief don’t ask permission, it just moves in and hides
Emma, I’m still talking to the air at night
Still saving you a seat in the middle of my life

I wear your old hoodie like a small time machine
Worn cuffs, faded scent, got me caught in between
The days that were golden and the nights that broke
Now the words sit heavy like a chain of smoke
I got anger in my chest, then I got guilt
For the things I left unsaid, for the dreams we built
You were the one who saw me when I couldn’t stand
Now I’m learning how to live with an empty hand

And I miss you in the quiet, miss you in the rain
Miss the way you said my name and made the bad days change
If love could keep you here, you’d still be by my side
But grief don’t ask permission, it just moves in and hides
Emma, I’m still talking to the air at night
Still saving you a seat in the middle of my life

So I write these scars into a verse to breathe
Put your light on the beat so you don’t disappear from me
If heaven has a corner where the real ones go
Then I hope you can hear this through the radio

And I miss you in the quiet, miss you in the rain
Miss the way you said my name and made the bad days change
If love could keep you here, you’d still be by my side
But grief don’t ask permission, it just moves in and hides
Emma, I’m still talking to the air at night
Still saving you a seat in the middle of my life