Chess Alone

[Verse 1]
My inbox opens before the blinds
A thousand small fires, all marked urgent
I trade my breakfast for deadline lines
And wear the same shirt on purpose

The group chat moved without my name
Their weekend plans became old news
I set the board beside the frame
And wait for someone I can’t lose

[Pre-Chorus]
White square, black square, quiet room
The clock keeps cutting through
I know each move before it lands
Still I don’t know what to do

[Chorus]
I play chess alone
Two colors, one phone
I check my own king
Then answer my own call

I work till the office hums
And the last train has gone
If friendship needs a little time
I never seem to have one

[Verse 2]
A rook goes straight like my career
A bishop bends around the truth
The knight arrives from nowhere near
The way old friends once used to do

I leave one chair across the table
For a laugh I can’t schedule in
But every file marked “final” turns fatal
And the morning starts again

[Pre-Chorus]
White square, black square, coffee stain
The clock keeps counting down
I built a fortress out of tasks
Then wondered why no one comes around

[Chorus]
I play chess alone
Two colors, one phone
I check my own king
Then answer my own call

I work till the office hums
And the last train has gone
If friendship needs a little time
I never seem to have one

[Bridge]
Tonight I push the laptop closed
The room looks larger than before
I move the black queen close to home
And leave the white side wanting more

Maybe a game is not a life
Maybe a win can wait till noon
I could text somebody “Are you free?”
But the cursor blinks across the room

[Final Chorus]
I play chess alone
Two colors, one phone
No crowd, no throne
Just a board beneath the cold lamp glow

I worked till the office hums
But the last train has gone
If friendship needs a little time
I’ll make a little time from now on

[Outro]
White square, black square, morning blue
One empty chair, one opening move