Everyone Requires a Plan

I feel like it's about keeping a secret?

"He whispers secrets through a thick mustache"

"And smoke hangs velvet curtains And hides her lips"

A shared secret. I feel like it's more about their true selves than something they did, but i may be wrong.

"And she hopes to hell it's worth all her health risks"

She knows it's bad for her to hide like this. It's killing her. But she still does so, because she would rather die than let other pople know what she did or who she is.

BUT:

"I know it was you"

I think this line pretty much confirms she was trying to keep a secret.

NOW:

The interesting part:

"'Cause everyone requires a plan I can give you It's all been a sleight of hand"

Idk how common the expression "A sleight of hand" is for native english speakers but this is what i found on the interent:

1 a : a cleverly executed trick or deception b : a conjuring trick requiring manual dexterity 2 a : skill and dexterity in conjuring tricks b : adroitness in deception

These two people, the man and the woman (but specially the woman) have been faking for a long time. They're masters at it. But since they know it's killing them, I feel like they do it out of nessesity or fear. Also, the expression "She hopes to Hell" makes me think she knows that's where she's going to end up.

They know they're not good people. They have done bad things and they know there's no salvation for them.

"He whispers secrets through a thick mustache And she listens to him Flicks her cigarette's ash"

The cigarette is her mask, what keeps her hidden. Flicking the cigarette means she's making sure her mask hides her well, even if it kills her. The fact that he whispers secrets makes me wonder if the woman is actually a spy, or if he's telling her about his past mistakes. Like the smoke, the mustache covers his lips, but he can live with it and eventually, reveals the truth my himself.

Maybe she's lying to him. He tells her he's a bad man, she makes sure he doesn't see she's as fucked up as him.

The line "I know it was you" shows that, after all, someone saw who she is or what she's done. The way it's phrased makes me think it was more something she did. What makes me wonder WHAT is that she did.

The first person is used twice.

"I can give you"

and

"I know it was you"

The singer is talking to the woman, most likely. It doesn't sound like she cheated on him or something like that. That way, of course he would know it was her. It makes me think of something more serious, like a betrayal or a murder. But honestly I can't tell.

I have no idea what the "I can give you" could mean.

I think the song is about an escape plan. Two lovers, one being in a relationship, escape from reality,hence the "everyone requires a plan" and the guy telling the girl "I can give you" this escape plan. But it's all a big secret, hence the whispering and pulsing nerves, hoping it will all be worth the health risks. He concludes by saying he knew all along she was his plan all along, "I knew it was you, I knew it was you". Romantic but very tragic actually, since happiness cannot be build on someone else's sadness.