The Missing Piece of a Piano By: Sean Roberts
E-mail: seanr_13@yahoo.ca
Author's Note: I would like to say a very heartful thank-you to the two people who took the time to do an absolutely incredible job of editing this work for me. I would also like to thank everybody who wrote me--you are my encouragement and you made every moment I spent composing this piece worthwhile. I hope that for all of you, the music will never stop.
Faye, if you ever read this, I lost you but my love for you will never die. Thanks for the inspiration.
Bar 19
The gathering of a family--everybody is there except for Keith. An elaborate dinner has been arranged by Daniel's parents; set up as a buffet on the dining table, pushed against the wall. Everybody is with plates in their hands.
Mr. and Mrs. Lewis, before taking food, approach Faye. Daniel introduces them. He can hear the love in their voices when they tell her how absolutely beautifully she played tonight. They leave to get food and Daniel steals a kiss on her cheek. "You really did," he says. She smiles at him.
Everybody has met. Because of the relationships of their children they have come together tonight. Daniel's sadness is being relieved by the love everybody in the room feels towards him. Seth, demanding silence, graces them with the song he has been practicing. When he finishes Daniel goes up to him and shakes his hand in an official manner. Well done. Seth smiles up at him. Behind Daniel, Seth's parents are beaming. Daniel's parents are proud of their son and Ashley's parents miss their own more than ever. But as they watch Daniel take a bite of food, they are reminded of the time they had with their son and are grateful for the friendship the boys were able to give each other. Ashley begins to talk to Faye. Mark stares at his brother, knowing he still has a lot to learn. Keith smiles. Daniel turns to look out the window and he sees a star brighten.
He sits in the dark corner. Johann Sebastian Bach leans against the nearest file cabinet. Daniel's legs are crossed, his violin raised up to his chin. He watches the notes and he plays. He does it quietly so as to not disturb anybody else who might be in the library. He knows if he plays too loudly the sound will carry.
His eyes stay open. He reads ahead and in the time he has before he has to look at the music again he stares around at the still room. The room is now truly full of music. His life is full of music. He thinks of Faye at the piano. He thinks of her smile and how it gives him a feeling of warmth. He loves, most of all, sitting beside her and watching her play. He can hear the sound more clearly; he can hear the taps of the keys and sometimes the clicks of her fingernails against them. He can hear her breathing and he can touch her leg. He can smell the shampoo in her hair.
The smiles that make him smile.
He remembers Keith's smile. He remembers the time he said to Faye, So you don't believe in magic? Keith's smile lives in Daniel's heart with the missing piece of a piano Daniel found and shared with world.
The End