I'll Be Here

We met, of all places, in front of Gristides

Some freakishly cold winter's day

I had on several unflattering layers of wool

He slipped on the ice with his grocery bags full

So I rescued some Froot Loops he dropped by the curb

And he made some remark that my smile was superb

I thought that was sweet and I started to go

When he said, "Hey, whatcha doing tomorrow?

Because I'll be here

At the corner of Bleaker and Mercer tomorrow at seven

If you want to meet up, I'll be waiting right here

And in case there are two fellas waiting for you

My name's John"

He waved, and then

He was gone

♪

Needless to say, I went back there to meet him

Mostly to see if he'd show

And there he was

Out in the cold, with his jacket pulled tight

He took me to dinner and kissed me goodnight

The next week, we went to this terrible play

And the week after that, drank hot chocolate all day

And suddenly, eight or nine months had flown by

When he said "Hey, whatcha doing the rest of your life?

Because I'll be here

Right beside you, as long as you want me to be

There's no question

There is nothing I've wanted so much in my life

This might sound immature

But I'm totally sure

You're the one"

And we had just begun!

We got hitched in September, our favorite month

With a rock band that played in this old synagogue

And we bought an apartment, on West 17th Street

And talked about children and getting a dog

Our first anniversary came in a flash

And we promised to take the day off

He had to stop into his office that morning, and so

I went walking uptown to this bakery I know

When I heard on the street, what I thought was a joke

Till I noticed the sirens and saw all the smoke

So I'm running back home with this feeling of dread

To the voicemail he left

With the last words he said

♪

I'm sorry

I don't mean to ruin your evening

By bringing up all of this stuff

You're probably wondering why I even called you tonight

Well, today something happened that spooked me alright

I saw this stormcloud of papers fall down from the sky

And I thought of that day, and I started to cry

When as sure as I breathe, I heard John, clear as day

Saying, "Hey, you're allowed to move on

It's okay

Because I'll be here

Even if you decide to get rid of my favorite sweater

Even if you go out on my birthday this year

Instead of sitting at home

Letting all of life's moments pass by

You don't have to cry!

Because I'll be here

When you start going back to the places we went to together

When you take off my ring, and you let yourself smile

When you meet someone handsome and patient and true

When he says that he wants to be married to you

When you call him one night, and he meets you downtown

When you finally answer him yes..."

Yes!

Jason...

I will marry you

I will give you my heart

It has taken so long

But I'm ready to start

Right now John's whispering 'congrats' in my ear

Cause I finally let myself tell you

That I will be here