Adele, who wrote the song "Chasing Pavements", answers this herself in an interview:
Q. The first single off of 19 was "Chasing Pavements." What life events served as inspiration for the lyrics?
A. I had a fight in a club with the boy the album's about, and then I ran off down the street. It was really late – it was 6 in the morning. There was no one chasing me and I wasn't chasing anyone. I was just running away. I remember saying to myself, "What you're chasing is you're chasing an empty pavement." It's a metaphor. It's impossible to chase a pavement but I was chasing that pavement.
Q. The first single off of 19 was "Chasing Pavements." What life events served as inspiration for the lyrics?
A. I had a fight in a club with the boy the album's about, and then I ran off down the street. It was really late – it was 6 in the morning. There was no one chasing me and I wasn't chasing anyone. I was just running away. I remember saying to myself, "What you're chasing is you're chasing an empty pavement." It's a metaphor. It's impossible to chase a pavement but I was chasing that pavement.