Leo's Melody

Every night is the same. I sit in my favorite spot by the window, fascinated by the vast darkness above me. All is still and quiet, except for the wonderful tune coming from the window next door. The sound of music fills me with joy, with a beat that almost matches the twinkling lights above us. I wait until it stops before I lay myself to rest.

“Leo, you’re going to be late!” I hear my mother calling me from the other room. Oh shoot, have I overslept again? I glance at the clock and grab as much of my things as I can. I kiss my mother goodbye and run for the door. Someone has been waiting for me.

“What took you so long? You promised you’d get up earlier if I played you a song every night! I don’t want to be late again,” she says, urging me to walk faster.

“I’m sorry, Melody! I didn’t want to fall asleep and miss any other songs you were playing,” I tell her, trying to keep up with her pace. All she could do was laugh at my sorry excuse.

We hurriedly head to school, barely making it to first period. I don’t know why she always wants to be early to these things, since nothing really happens. The day goes on and on, with the teacher droning on about things that I don’t really want to hear.

I want to hear her play.

The thought stays in my head. The day is almost over, and I’ll get to see her again soon. The final bell rings, and I’m the first out the door. I find Melody, and we head home together.

“One month to go! Are you excited?” I ask her. She doesn’t seem like herself today. Did something happen in class?

“I don’t really want to talk about it,” she says.

Our trip home was quiet. We stopped by the store to grab a few things for school, and then had dinner at one of our favorite restaurants in town. Nothing I said or did was cheering her up. What’s wrong, Melody?

I drop her off at her doorstep and wish her well. I hope you feel better.

Even though school has tired me out, I automatically finish all my chores, homework, and anything that might keep me busy tonight. I need to keep myself free. I head to my favorite spot by the window. She should start playing any minute now.

I wait, and wait, and wait. Nothing. Perhaps she’s having a rough time with her homework. I wait a bit more, but still, nothing. I get my phone and dial in Melody’s number. Her mother answers, telling me that she has already gone to sleep. What’s wrong, Melody? The stars aren’t as bright without your music tonight. I gaze out the window a little bit longer before I finally let myself rest.

All the alarms I’ve set from the night before start to wake me. I made sure that today I’d get up early and find out what’s been going on with Melody. My mother is surprised to see me up an hour earlier than usual. I tell her what happened, and she lets me go.

Melody and I walk out the door at the same time. Our eyes meet. She greets me with a huge grin on her face, her attitude the complete opposite of yesterday’s as if nothing happened. As confused as I am, I let her have her way so as not to put her in a bad mood again. We head to school, arriving earlier than usual.

“We’ve never gotten to school this early before, what do you want to do?” she asks me. I snapped. Something was clearly wrong, but she was acting like it was nothing. I demanded an explanation. I was her best friend, after all, but it felt like she was hiding something from me.

“WHAT’S WRONG MELODY?” I scream.

She sighs and takes me to the music room. She sits in front of the piano and begins to weep.

“I just wanted to play,” she says with a muffled voice, eyes red and puffy. “I wanted to become a pianist someday, to share my music with the world. I can’t do that anymore.”

“Yes, you can! The recital is in less than a month, and that’s more than enough time to practice, especially for someone as skilled as you,” I try to convince her, confused as to why we were even having this conversation.

“Leo, my days are numbered.”

“…What do you mean?” I ask her, disbelief painted across my face.

“My results came in yesterday. The doctors aren’t even sure if I’ll make it to recital day. I don’t know what to do, Leo.”

I pull her into the tightest hug I could give. I try to hold back my tears as we sit in silence for a bit. Minutes later, the halls start to buzz with life as students start flowing in. “We’d better go,” she says. I nod and surly make my way to my first class. What a way to start the day.

A few weeks pass, never again the same as they were before. I didn’t want to admit it to myself, but Melody was growing weak. She would play the piano just enough so she could practice for her recital. I didn’t want to lose hope, but even the stars never seemed to twinkle as bright as they did again. I can’t lose her.

The day came for Melody’s recital. I am excited, but at the same time I dread what might happen. I didn’t get enough sleep, but I still got up as early as I could, and made sure I got to the venue an hour early, just as she’d like it.

She arrives a few minutes later, wearing a stunning red dress that highlights her clavicles, and makes her glow brighter than all the stars in the galaxy. I can’t wait to hear you play, Melody.

Guests arrive and begin to occupy most of the seats in the auditorium. I make sure mine is the best. I wanted to show her how much I support her. A few moments later, music echoes around the whole room, and instrumentalists come and go. She is up next.

For a while now, everything hadn’t felt even the slightest bit alright. But as she begins to play her piece, it all starts to come back. This night, like the ones before, feels the same again. I’m sitting in a new spot, fascinated by the new darkness around me. The sound of your music fills me with the greatest joy I’ve ever felt in a long, long time. I will always treasure this moment, Melody.

As your piece comes to a close, our eyes meet, and I finally see the twinkling lights I thought I’d never see again. It puts a smile on my face, and a warm feeling in my heart.

If I could control time, I’d never have let that moment dissipate.

Nothing was ever the same again. You closed your eyes, and you fell, right as you played that last note. You were rushed to the hospital. The doctors said they did everything they could. Why couldn’t they save you, Melody?

I’ll never hear your melody or see the stars again.