Coffee ring on vinyl seat cushion
Map corners curled from years of pushing
Red line bleeding through blue ballpoint ink
Someone's commute frozen on the brink
Paper cities folded in my hand
Midnight routes I'll never understand
Grease stains bloom on districts underground
Nineteen eighty-two won't make a sound
Eggs over easy on the flattop hiss
Regular Joe don't order none of this
He reads the map like scripture every night
Traces transfers in the fluorescent light
Paper cities folded in my hand
Midnight routes I'll never understand
Grease stains bloom on districts underground
Nineteen eighty-two won't make a sound
Green line stops at stations long since gone
Names rubbed smooth where fingers traveled on
I wipe the table with a grease-gray rag
Watch the ink roads flutter like a flag
Paper cities folded in my hand
Midnight routes I'll never understand
Grease stains bloom on districts underground
Nineteen eighty-two won't make a sound
Waitress pours me coffee black and strong
Map shows a city where I don't belong
Express trains skip local after midnight
My shift ends when the sky turns pale white
Angular bass walks the floor at three
Guitar strums cut through steam and history
Every stop a story left untold
Every transfer bought and sold
Map gets folded neat in plastic sleeve
Tucked in apron pocket when I leave
Tomorrow night it'll wait in booth three
Same red lines staring back at me
Paper cities folded in my hand
Midnight routes I'll never understand
Grease stains bloom on districts underground
Nineteen eighty-two won't make a sound
Booth three map folded tight
Ride the lines till morning light