Ludus

Lyrics

[Verse 1]
I left a sentence unfinished
At the bar
On purpose
And watched you
Lean in
To hear the rest
And the rest
Did not exist
The sentence was built
To be incomplete
The leaning
Was the point
The words were furniture
Arranged to create
A gap
You'd have to cross
And you crossed it
And I let you think
You decided to
But the gap
Was measured
And the crossing
Was invited
And the invitation
Was the silence
At the end of a sentence
That never planned
To finish
[Pre-Chorus]
This is not seduction
Seduction has a destination
This is the volley
The ball in the air
Between two people
Who are not trying to win
Because winning
Would end the game
And the game
Is the whole thing
[Chorus]
L'amour ludique, l'amour ludique
The game with no score and no intention of one
L'amour ludique, l'amour ludique
The eye contact
Held one beat past accidental
The laugh
That is ten percent louder
Than the joke required
The leaning in
To a sentence
That was never going to end
Because the ending
Would be an answer
And answers
Are where flirtation
Goes to die
And this
Is not dying
This is the most alive
A conversation gets
Before it decides
What it is
[Verse 2]
I touched your arm
To make a point
I did not need to make
The point was an excuse
The arm was the reason
And the touching
Lasted exactly long enough
To not be an accident
And short enough
To not be a declaration
There is a window
Between accident and declaration
That is approximately
One and a half seconds wide
And I have lived
In that window
My whole life
And the rent
Is reasonable
And the view
Is spectacular
Bà ngoại would say
Stop playing
And I would say
The playing
Is not the problem
The playing
Is the only part
Where both people
Are equal
And both people
Are free
And both people
Can walk away
Without anyone
Having lost anything
Except the game
Which was the only thing
Worth having
[Chorus]
L'amour ludique, l'amour ludique
The game with no score and no intention of one
L'amour ludique, l'amour ludique
The touch
One and a half seconds long
Not accident
Not declaration
The window between
Where I live
And the view
Is the other person
Deciding whether
To lean in
Or lean back
And either answer
Is fine
And the either
Is the ludus
And the ludus
Is the most generous love
Because it asks
For nothing
And offers
Everything
Except a conclusion
[Bridge]
There are people
Who think flirtation
Is dishonest
A trick
A manipulation
And I understand
Why they think that
Because they have never played a game
Where both players
Knew the rules
And both players
Chose to play
And both players
Could stop
At any time
And the not stopping
Was the mutual agreement
That the volley
Was better
Than the point
[Outro]
The sentence
Is still unfinished
The lean
Is still happening
The game
Has no score
And I am winning
And you are winning
And the winning
Is that neither of us
Has stopped playing
And the not stopping
Is the love
And the love
Has no plans
And the no plans
Is the plan