Vending Room Alarms
Verse 1 The fluorescent tubes buzz loud at three A.M.
Drowning out the crying down the hall. The glass front shines on rows of sugar gems
Promising a sugar rush to break the fall. The coffee spout coughs out a bitter brown
In paper cups that fold and burn the skin. A wellness poster peeling
coming down, The tape gave up the fight to keep it in.
Verse 2 A nurse in blue stares blankly at the floor
Her badge turned round
her shoe taps out the beat. Two kids are sleeping near the sliding door
In jackets used as blankets on the seat. An old man grips a Gatorade too tight
He rubs the label till the paper tears. The TV flashes storms in silent light
But no one on this level sees or cares.
Pre-Chorus Down the corridor, the pumps repeat
The squeak of rubber wheels on linoleum. The air is thick and heavy in the heat
Sticking in the throat like chewing gum.
Chorus It’s an alarm bell ringing in the quiet space
Not the trucks outside
but in the chest. We feed the coins to keep a steady pace
Buying minutes
stealing back the rest. Eating chips while doctors write the chart
Standing in the cold and blinding white. This little room holds every broken heart
That bargains with the middle of the night.
Verse 3 I watch the kid push dollars in the slot
The reader spits them back
the edges worn. His hands are shaking with the nerves he’s got
His eyes are red and looking tired and torn. The coil finally turns
the candy drops
A plastic sound that rattles in the tray. He laughs a dry and empty sort of cough
Then walks back to the dark and turns away.
Bridge The speaker crackles with a sudden code
The coffee grinder stops
the room goes still. We wait to hear the ending of the load
If someone made the climb or fell the hill. Then humming starts again
the bottles clink
As if the building didn’t hold its breath. We wash the fear away down in the sink
Ignoring all the closeness of the death.
Outro The sun comes up on windshields wet with dew
The shift change comes
the tired eyes look away. The vending lights keep burning
shining through
Waiting for the next group of the day. Buying ten minutes in a plastic chair
Breathing in the stale and recycled air.