The Lost Little Music Box

“Coming Nana!” I yelled from the van while placing the last dusty box in the back, then closed it shut. Walking towards the old wooden house I grew up in, I smiled. The charm of the uneven floorboards, the wall with our heights etched into, and finally, the room Blaire and I shared until our early teens. Each inch held a fond memory from our childhood. We moved away years ago but always visited Nana and Gramps every holiday until a few months ago when Gramps passed away.

“Nana, are you sure about this retirement community and leaving here after all this time?”

Tap, tap, tap. I turned to see a delicate, tan woman slowly walking through the house in a beige pantsuit matching her cane. She replied. “Dear, your grandpa and I owned this house long before you were born. I cannot live here without him. He is still with me no matter where I go. At least at my new place, there will be a pool. Jimmy never wanted a pool. I always told him nothing would stop me from drinking a margarita on a float in retirement. Ha ha.” She gently patted my back as she turned to leave the house, trying to hide the napkin she used to wipe her tears away.

Turning to follow, I stopped. Creak! Squeak! I heard a faint sound as I moved my boot across a loose floorboard. Creak! Squeak! I finally knelt and pulled it up. Moving the piece to the side, I reached down to pull out a small wooden black box that barely fit into my palm. I used my slim caramel fingers to brush the thick layer of dust from the metal piece on the lid to reveal the words: ‘Forever my Sunshine.’ Curiously, I went to open the clasp.

“Jada, come on. We are waiting for you.” I slid the box into my parka pocket and dashed to see Ma and Nana ready to go. With a grin, I slid in, and off we went.

After dropping Nana off at her new condo, we finally got home. I showered and passed out on my bed. Drifting into a world of imagination, I felt a weight on my chest. Purr. Purr. Looking up, I saw Freckle - our large ginger cat - staring with her big green eyes. Too exhausted to move, we both fell asleep.

Knock, knock. I sighed and rolled over. Falling back to sleep and hoping whoever it was would go away. The door swung open, and in stomped Blaire. “Stop taking my things without asking first.” She grabbed the parka from the ground, sticking her tongue out and continuing to make faces. I sat up and listened as she rambled on. “You are always leaving stuff in it too. What is it this time? Candy or chocolate.”

“You know you are only older by two years. Why are you so whiny!” I brushed back my brunette hair as she removed the box from the jacket. “I forgot about that. I found it clearing out Nana's house under a floorboard in our old room. I want to open it, so give it here.”

“No, my jacket. Finders’ keepers.” Blaire loves to take things; I must have learned that from her. Eventually, rolling her eyes, she placed it in my clammy palm. Cradling Freckle, she joined me on the twin bed.

“We should open it and see!” With a cheeky grin, we fixed our hazel eyes on the box. As soon as I opened it, a beautiful melody emerged. Inside, a small golden bear with a red heart slowly spun. We sat, mesmerized by this little music box, swaying, and humming along. Crash! We closed the box and ran to the kitchen.

“Ma, let me help you clean up that glass.” I placed the box on the counter and rushed to help clean the broken shards from the ground. As I brushed, I saw tears fill Ma's eyes as she placed a palm on the music box. “I found that in the floorboards at Nana’s house. I figured it must have been there for years, and no one would want it anymore. Wait, is it yours?”

Together, we finished clearing the mess. Then, we sat opposite Ma at the small wooden table beside the window overlooking the front yard. “Yes, it’s mine.” Ma’s voice was shaky. I felt a cloud of shame form over me. How was I to know it was hers? I had not done anything wrong, I kept telling myself. Sitting with my arms crossed, we waited for the story to start. “After college, I would play the old piano in the town square, and one day this girl sat next to me and joined in. Her name was Sarah. She was excellent and such a beautiful soul. We were best friends and saved up money to get an electric keyboard. We would roll it out in a different spot in the city on the weekend and play for hours.”

Giggling, we pretended to play instruments. Then, Blaire cut in. “Get to the good part, Ma.”

She gave a deep sigh and looked at us lovingly before continuing. “It was how I met your father. He had just won a teddy bear at the arcade and handed it to me after I finished my song. I blushed. Then he asked me to dance while Sarah played this song on the piano. Unfortunately, she lost her life that night in a car accident, and your father had this made for me on our first anniversary. After he passed away, it was too difficult to look at, so I hid it away and forgot about it.”

Our smiles turned to sadness as we sat lost for words. We sat hugging for what felt like a lifetime. Then, I ran into the closet and pulled out the old keyboard. Brushing off the dust, we plugged it in and put Ma’s fingers on the keys. She laughed. “Okay, okay, how about a song from a movie?”

“No!” Blaire said. “The music box song.”

As the day turned to night, we laughed and cried together as Ma played the beautiful song from the lost music box.