Songs for Nell

Verse 1

The tap runs on and no one minds water finds the drain and goes you left the phone beside the sink some kind of calm only you know

Pre-chorus

I could call you just to hear you breathe no news, no reason, nothing to tell just your voice moving slow through the house and the sound of it starts to swell

Chorus

Nell, you make the waiting easy not one thing about you rushed I have loved you in the ordinary in the sink, in the dripping hush

Verse 2

You hum while the water keeps its time never chasing what the hour meant some love needs a reason to stay yours just settles where it went

Bridge

I don't need the phone to ring I have you moving round this room and that is its own kind of everything

Chorus

Nell, you make the waiting easy not one thing about you rushed I have loved you in the ordinary in the sink, in the dripping hush

Outro

The tap will run its course and stop and I'll still be here, loving you like that

Verse 1

Streetlight breaks against the brick Halfway up the empty road I walk slower when you're near Something in me finally slows

Pre-chorus

I've counted every shadow twice Waiting on the words to land Feels like I could tell you now

Chorus

Nell, you're the reason I stop and look Simple as a ringing bell Nobody else has ever held me still Nobody else but Nell

Verse 2

You lean against the same old wall Like you've got nowhere else to be I forget what I was saying When you turn and look at me

Bridge

No grand plan, no perfect timing Just this street and just this light You make the ordinary holy You make quiet feel like flight

Chorus

Nell, you're the reason I stop and look Simple as a ringing bell Nobody else has ever held me still Nobody else but Nell

Outro

The brick still holds the evening light And I still stop right where you fell

Verse 1

Bus shelter, metal bench, cold and slow Two damp gloves left there in a row You laughed and said they must be a pair I thought about you leaving mine there

Pre-chorus

I never needed much to feel this way Just you, beside me, ending the day Something in me starts to swell

Chorus

Nell, you're the warmth I didn't plan for Nell, you're the door I keep coming back for Simple as rain, steady as a bell Nobody holds my heart like you do, Nell

Verse 2

You don't need grand words or a big scene Just your hand finding mine in between The little things you do without a sound Are the reasons my whole world stays around

Bridge

No fireworks, no fuss, no chase Just you, steady, in my favourite place Some folks need the world to prove it's real We just need this quiet, and how it feels

Chorus

Nell, you're the warmth I didn't plan for Nell, you're the door I keep coming back for Simple as rain, steady as a bell Nobody holds my heart like you do, Nell

Outro

Somewhere there's a bench still holding on Like I hold you, long after the rain's gone

Verse 1

The radio hums low beside a glass of water on the shelf Its quiet static sounds like waves that no one else can tell And I could listen to that hush forever if it helps you rest Because the whole wide room grows calm whenever you are near yourself

Pre-chorus

The light is going soft and slow, the way it always does The house breathes out and settles down the way a held thing was So let the small sounds carry you to somewhere warm and still

Chorus

Nell, the night has room for you to rest in it a while Nothing here will hurry you, no reason yet to smile Sleep is just a gentle place where nothing needs to dwell And you are safe inside it now, my quiet-hearted Nell

Verse 2

Somewhere far off a station hisses softly through the dark And I would sit and listen to it always, just to mark How steady you become when everything else goes quiet Because your breathing is the sound I keep here in my heart

Chorus

Nell, the night has room for you to rest in it a while Nothing here will hurry you, no reason yet to smile Sleep is just a gentle place where nothing needs to dwell And you are safe inside it now, my quiet-hearted Nell

Bridge

No need to hold on tight to anything but sleep Let every worry loosen now and settle soft and deep

Chorus

Nell, the night has room for you to rest in it a while Nothing here will hurry you, no reason yet to smile Sleep is just a gentle place where nothing needs to dwell And you are safe inside it now, my quiet-hearted Nell

Outro

The water in the glass stays still, the static hums along And you drift off inside the warmth of this unfinished song

Verse 1

Old boards sigh beneath the blanket folded on my arm Every step I take is soft and slow to keep you still Warmth is coming closer now to shield you from the harm Sleep is waiting just beyond that little windowsill

Pre-chorus

Hush now, let the whole wide house grow quiet round your head Every creak and every corner learns to hold its breath Close your eyes, the dark's a friend who tucks you into bed

Chorus

Nell, my Nell, the night has come to hold you soft and slow Nobody can touch this peace that wraps around you now Deep in dreaming, safe and warm, that's all you need to know Nell, you're kept, you're loved, you're held, so let your worries bow

Verse 2

Somewhere down the landing all the lights have dimmed to grey Nothing waits to trouble you, no sound will dare intrude Every worry of the day has folded clean away Rest is close and gathering like something warm and good

Bridge

Blankets pulled up to your chin, the whole house breathing low Nothing needs an answer now, just let the quiet grow

Chorus

Nell, my Nell, the night has come to hold you soft and slow Nobody can touch this peace that wraps around you now Deep in dreaming, safe and warm, that's all you need to know Nell, you're kept, you're loved, you're held, so let your worries bow

Outro

Somewhere the old floor settles too, its creaking turned to rest Sleep now, Nell, you're carried safe, held closest and held best

Verse 1

The last bus hums so low it could be humming just for you Your breathing fogs the glass and blooms there soft and slow Outside the world goes quiet, keeping every light subdued Wherever this night carries us, that's the only place I'll go

Pre-chorus

Let your shoulders sink down heavy, let your small hands finally rest Every mile tonight is folding gently into one long sigh There's nothing left to hold but this, so hold it, you are blessed

Chorus

Nell, the whole night leans in closer just to keep you warm Somewhere past the window, morning waits but is in no rush Nell, you are the softest thing that sheltered from the storm And here inside this quiet, love, the whole wide world can hush

Verse 2

The glass stays warm a little longer where your breath has been Like proof that you were here, that you are always somewhere near Nothing in the dark tonight has any right to be unkind I'll keep the small lamp burning low till every star is clear

Chorus

Nell, the whole night leans in closer just to keep you warm Somewhere past the window, morning waits but is in no rush Nell, you are the softest thing that sheltered from the storm And here inside this quiet, love, the whole wide world can hush

Bridge

Sleep now, and let the engine be the only sound you know Nothing is asked of you but rest, and rest is all you owe

Chorus

Nell, the whole night leans in closer just to keep you warm Somewhere past the window, morning waits but is in no rush Nell, you are the softest thing that sheltered from the storm And here inside this quiet, love, the whole wide world can hush

Outro

The window's clear now, love, but still I'm watching over you Breathe easy, Nell, the night has got you all the way through