5:30 in the morning, a car’s engine turns
The driver’s dreams as expendable as the fuel that it burns
Out on the road before dawn breaks
Out the door long before his child wakes
Puts the pedal to the floor, rubber rolls against asphalt
Lights a cigarette and wonders if its all his fault
That his wife is addicted the deck
His kid’s life’s a wreck
Almost caught a sentence for holding a razor to the neck
Of his wife’s lover
Lover? He thinks to himself
That asshole was her lover?
What does that make me?
Am I just “the other”?
I work my fingers till they’re raw
Just to keep the fridge stocked
Spend my money on diapers and socks
While she blows hers on rocks
But I’m taken for granted,
Im just the other guy
My American dream is just a fucking lie
He clenches the wheel, turns toward the oncoming lane
He can end it in an instant, end all his fucking pain
This time, he thinks, I’m doing something for myself
He thinks about his ashes in an urn up on the shelf
But he smalls on the brakes before making that mistake
Know what? He thinks. This life ain’t mine to take
I gave it away when I made those vows, bought this house
When I held my baby son in these arms and promised I’d protect him from himself
I can’t end my life, my decision it’s not
As he turns his car into the parking lot
He leaves his car, slams the door behind him
Walks through the factory door with an ear-to-ear grin
Regardless of what happens,
from the joyful to the grim
I have to, I will,
I’ll live through it for him
