Lyrics Say No to This - Jasmine Cephas Jones, Leslie Odom, Jr., Lin-Manuel Miranda

Say No to This

There’s nothing like summer in the city
Someone under stress meets someone looking pretty
There’s trouble in the air, you can smell it
And Alexander’s by himself.
I’ll let him tell it
I hadn’t slept in a week
I was weak, I was awake
You never seen a bastard orphan
More in need of a break
Longing for Angelica
Missing my wife
That’s when Miss Maria Reynolds walked into my life, she said:
I know you are a man of honor
I’m so sorry to bother you at home
But I don’t know where to go, and I came here all alone…
She said:
My husband’s doin' me wrong
Beatin' me, cheatin' me, mistreatin' me…
Suddenly he’s up and gone
I don’t have the means to go on
So I offered her a loan, I offered to walk her home, she said
You’re too kind, sir
I gave her thirty bucks that I had socked away
She lived a block away, she said:
This one’s mine, sir
Then I said, «Well, I should head back home,»
She turned red, she led me to her bed
Let her legs spread and said:
Stay?
Hey…
Hey…
That’s when I began to pray:
Lord, show me how to
Say no to this
I don’t know how to
Say no to this
But my God, she looks so helpless
And her body’s saying, «Hell, yes.»
Whoa…
No, show me how to
Say no to this
I don’t know how to
Say no to this
In my mind, I’m tryin' to go
Go!
Go!
Go!
Then her mouth is on mine, and I don’t say…
No!
No!
Say no to this!
No!
No!
Say no to this!
No!
No!
Say no to this!
No!
No!
Say no to this!
I wish I could say that was the last time
I said that last time.
It became a pastime
A month into this endeavor I received a letter
From a Mr. James Reynolds, even better, it said:
Dear Sir, I hope this letter finds you in good health
And in a prosperous enough position to put wealth
In the pockets of people like me: down on their luck
You see, that was my wife who you decided to
Fuuuu…
Uh-oh!
You made the wrong sucker a cuckold
So time to pay the piper for the pants you unbuckled
And hey, you can keep seein' my whore wife
If the price is right: if not I’m telling your wife
I hid the letter and I raced to her place
Screamed, «How could you?!"in her face
She said:
No, sir!
Half dressed, apologetic
A mess, she looked pathetic, she cried:
Please don’t go, sir!
So was your whole story a setup?
I don’t know about any letter!
Stop crying
Goddammit, get up!
I didn’t know any better
I am ruined…
Please don’t leave me with him helpless (I am helpless — how could I do this?)
Just give him what he wants and you can have me
(I don’t want you)
Whatever you want (I don’t want you)
If you pay (I don’t)
You can stay
(Lord, show me how to say no to this)
Tonight (I don’t know how to say no to this)
('Cause the situation’s helpless)
Helpless
(And her body’s screaming, «Hell, yes.»)
Whoa!
(No, show me how to say no to this)
How can you say no to this?
(How can I say no to this?)
(There is nowhere I can go)
(When her body’s on mine I do not say…)
(Yes) Yes
(Yes) Yes
(Yes) Ye-ye-yes
(Yes) Yes
(Say no to this…)
(I don’t say no to this) Don’t say no to this
(There is nowhere I can go)
So?
Nobody needs to know