CHAPTER : 21

(Recommended to read while listening to the YouTube song above)

I was lost, lost in the green pools of ocean. The long dark green strokes spreading from the pupils with those minute and intricate yellow freckles adorned his eyes like a rare gem. I could get lost in them, I could get lost in the green maze and never find my way out. Those eyes were still like a statue, staring at my soul through my eyes.

His long yet not so dense eyelashes blinked once which was enough to break his hypnotizing effect on me.

My eyes focused on the surroundings and realization hit me like a lightning bolt. I was totally squished against Mr. Dimitri's chest with his arms bound around me. Our chests were against each other, breathing in the same quiet rhythm with our faces only inches apart. His warm breath was fanning my, now heated, face while his eyes were on my red-tinted cheeks.

In a flash of a second, I pushed myself away from him and averted my gaze to my wet boots. I tucked a strand of my raven hair behind my ear when I heard him clearing his throat.

"Keep your boots in the shoe rack beside you and hang your jacket in the closet behind that door." He pointed a finger towards my right side.

I obliged all his commands with my head held low while his scrutinizing gaze followed my actions. After I did what was told, he led me towards what seemed like a library with each and every nook and corner covered with books except for a wall that had a large window giving a view of the backyard garden. The polished wooden floor reflected off the last rays of twilight entering the room from the windows and in front of the window, sat a very proud and royal mahogany piano.


The piano of my childhood.

My hand traced the shiny surface of the piano which had many scars and scratches on it, showing the age and experience of the piano. Above the keys was an inscription, Vasili, in scrapped off gold. It was quite similar to the very first piano I saw when I was a kid. The past clouded my mind and I found myself going back into the time, into the memories.

My family for some strange reason always cared about what others thought about them. No matter what, external appearances were always their number one priority. No matter what happened at home, they were always careful about showing others their generous side which was as fake as the rumors about cancer being an infectious disease instead of a genetic disease.

My father used to go to his friend's house and he made sure that all of us behaved like there were no fights or disturbances among us and instead we were a happy family.

The irony of that.

One Christmas my father decided to make another such appearance at his friend's house. We all had to be in our best behaviors and my newly acquired scars were to be covered by concealers. I was not quite social considering the fact that I was never allowed to have friends, just acquaintances so most part of the day I cowered in a corner of the room and stayed away from the hustle and bustle.

That Christmas was different for me because something incredible happened.

When you are depressed there is only one thing you want the most and that is to release the pain caged inside you. Many people wonder why depressed beings cut themselves, it is totally absurd to them because they never understand how much pain a person must have gone through to be submerged in the dark fog of depression.

The pain wants to be expressed,
The pain wants to be released,
The pain demands to be felt.

That Christmas was my new chapter because I found a release for my pain. It was the first time I laid my hands on a piano and the first key itself had struck a soft spot on my heart. I never knew how to play the piano but somehow I just found my balance and every fiber in my body felt peace for the first time...

When my family was busy putting up a fake show in front of their friends, I had snuck off into another room trying to escape. I remember that the room I entered was a study area but the only thing that caught my attention was the mahogany piano sitting in the corner with dust covering it.

The piano my Father's friend had was very similar to the one Mr. Dimitri had. Vasili was a piano manufacturing company that stopped its production in the mid-nineties. The pianos produced were unique in their own way because the melody they created was priceless.

A thousand memories rolled back to me like a strong gust of wind blowing into my face. That day was my turning page, I found myself for the first time trying to lift up from underneath the rubble. I found my soul instrument, a piano.

I guess that was the moment where I changed.

I heard footsteps coming towards me and stopping just beside me.

"It was my uncle's. My uncle was a very generous person, he didn't have much yet he never let anyone have nothing. I bought it off from him although he did not want the money. This piano has many memories but only one of them was worth it." Mr. Dimitri had a faraway look in his eyes as he looked at the piano with admiration. He really must have loved his uncle.

****

After that awkward moment down the memory lane ended, Mr. Dimitri sat on the piano bench which was long enough to fit two people. I tried to sit as far away as possible without having to touch him but our legs touched anyways and our hands brushed whenever I tried to play a little harder.

At a certain point in time, he asked me to play Clair De Lune by Claude Debussy which is a very very hard one to play. I remembered most of the notes but it was all jumbled up.

The first few verses were fine but as soon as the song started going higher I lost my tune and sat there gawking at the piano keys trying to remember the next verse.

Mr. Dimitri slowly placed his fingers on top of mine which shocked me to the core. He started playing Clair De Lune from the very beginning while making me move my fingers underneath his fingers so that we played the song together.

He didn't say a word and neither did I we just played the song together and submerged ourselves into the tune.

When he hit the last note everything became still and silent. The night outside was still and not even the swish of the wind was heard. He turned his head towards me and leaned towards me to close the distance between our lips.

I could not comprehend what happened but I was totally frozen. His lips started moving against my unmoving ones in a slow and steady pace. As soon as his lips increased their pace on my lips he grabbed my head and pulled me towards him.

That was my waking call.

I pushed his hands away from me and darted towards the door. Somehow I grabbed my jacket and my boots and opened the door to exit the house when I heard heavy footsteps coming towards me. I did not wait for the unimaginable to happen and started my car to drive at the highest speed possible towards my home.