NINA I used to think we lived at the top of the world When the world was just a subway street map And the 1 slash 9 climbed a dotted line to my place
BENNY There's no 9 train now
NINA Right I used to think the Bronx was a place in the sky When the world was just a subway map And my thoughts took shape
NINA/BENNY On that fire escape
NINA Can you remind me of what it was like At the top of the world?
BENNY Come with me We begin July with a stop at my corner fire hydrant
NINA You would open it every summer
BENNY I would bust it with a wrench till my face got drenched Till I heard the sirens Then I ran like hell
NINA You ran like hell
BENNY Yeah I ran like hell
NINA I remember well
BENNY To your father's dispatch window, \"Hey, let me in, yo They're coming to get me!\"
NINA You were always in constant trouble-
BENNY Then your dad would act all snide But he let me hide You'd be there inside
NINA Life was easier then
BENNY Nina, everything is easier when you're home The street's a little kinder When you're home Can't you see That the day seems clearer Now that you are here or is it me Maybe it's just me We gotta go I gotta show you all I know The sun is setting and the light is getting low
NINA Are we going to Castle Garden?
BENNY Maybe, maybe not, but way to take a shot, when the day is hot I got a perfect shady spot a little ways away that oughta cool us down
NINA Cool us down-
BENNY Welcome back to town
NINA Now, back in high school when it darkened You'd hang out in Bennett Park and
BENNY Usnavi would bring his radio...
NINA As I walked home from Senior Studies I'd see you rapping with your buddies
BENNY With the volume high
NINA I walked on by
BENNY You walked on by-
RAPPERS No pare, sigue sigue! (x7)
BENNY/COMMUNITY When you're home
BENNY Oh, the summer night are cooler
BENNY/COMMUNITY When you're home
NINA Now that you're here with me
BENNY And that song you're hearing is the neighborhood just cheering you along
NINA Don't say that
BENNY What's wrong?
NINA Don't say that! When I was younger I'd imagine what would happen if my parents had stayed in Puerto Rico Who would I be if I had never seen Manhattan If I lived in Puerto Rico with my people? My people... I feel like all my life I've tried to find the answer Working harder, learning Spanish, learning all I can I thought I might find the answers out at Stanford But I'd stare out at the sea Thinking, Where am I supposed to be? So please don't say you're proud of me, when I've lost my way
BENNY Then can I say: I couldn't get my mind off you all day Now listen to me That may be how you perceive it But Nina please believe that when you find your way again You're gonna change the world and then We're all gonna brag and say We knew her when This was your home
NINA I'm home-
BENNY Welcome home-
NINA When you're here with me-
BENNY Welcome home-
NINA I used to think we lived at the top of the world
BENNY Welcome home-
NINA I'm home-
(at the same time) BENNY You're finally home- You're home!