(Song Title: Calculus & Regret) (Intro - Fingerpicked Acoustic Guitar with a slightly mournful tone) (Quietly) Twenty-two… a blueprint bright, A project lead in neon light. Corporate climb, a steady pace, Another rung in this gilded race. Junior college nights, a weary mind, Leaving ambition far behind. (Verse 1 - Soft Vocals, building slightly) The spreadsheets blurred, the deadlines tight, Another meeting, another fight. A flicker of hope, a different view, English Two, and Candace too. Sunlight caught her auburn hair, And suddenly, the world felt rare. (Chorus - Slightly more layered vocals, strings enter subtly) But silence held me in its sway, A shy confession I couldn’t say. The clock ticked on, a fading chime, Lost in the echoes of passing time. Calculus and regret entwined, A chance unseized, left far behind. (Verse 2 - Back to softer vocals) Full load classes, daybreak's call, Watching her across the lecture hall. The pressure mounted, a silent plea, To break the ice, just to be free. Then in the waiting room, a sudden chance, A hesitant smile, a nervous glance. (Verse 3 - Slightly more animated vocals) "Calculus," I stammered, feeling weak, “Can apply beyond what engineers seek.” Her words like sunlight, sharp and clear, Revealing depths I held so dear. More than beauty, a brilliant mind, A connection lost, left far behind. (Chorus - Slightly more layered vocals, strings enter subtly) But silence held me in its sway, A shy confession I couldn’t say. The clock ticked on, a fading chime, Lost in the echoes of passing time. Calculus and regret entwined, A chance unseized, left far behind. (Bridge - Tempo slows slightly, more introspective vocals) Years spun onward, a dizzying flight, Ambition crumbled into endless night. The career dissolved, the future frayed, A tumbleweed lost, a life betrayed. Stability found, but hollow and cold, A story unfinished, never to be told. (Verse 4 - Quiet vocals, almost spoken) Sixty-seven now, the twilight nears, Haunted by whispers of bygone years. Then a tiny meow outside my door, A tabby kitten, wanting more. FIP’s shadow, a desperate fight, Against the darkness, for a fragile light. (Outro - Acoustic guitar returns to intro melody, vocals fade out) (Quietly) So all this noise to save a cat? But what of Candace? A lost embrace... If I had spoken then, so long ago, that damn cat would be dead. Calculus and regret… Regret…