Brass face catches fluorescent glow
Token booths are dark and slow
Rats trace paths on grimy tile
I point north but stay awhile
Needle steady needle true
Midnight trains rush dark and blue
No fare needed no meter running
Just magnetic north still coming
Rain drips down the stairwell cracks
Umbrella ribs like broken backs
Late shift nurses rush the turnstile
I watch them go mile after mile
Drunk kid drops a quarter near
Spins like planets disappear
Picks it up and checks the time
North don't change for nickels dimes
Needle steady needle true
Midnight trains rush dark and blue
No fare needed no meter running
Just magnetic north still coming
Conductors yell the final stop
Platform lights begin to drop
But I don't punch a clock or card
I guard the direction hard
Dawn bleeds gray through ventilation
Commuters wake for morning station
Silver case gets warm in palm
True north keeps the city calm
Needle steady needle true
Morning trains rush gray and blue
No fare needed no meter running
Just magnetic north still coming
Steel heart ticks in tunnels deep
True north never goes to sleep
