Part 1 

"-What was with that performance, this is unacceptable, even though you practised for hours before the concert you still managed to mess it up. Haah... You're so useless... Why can't you be like your younger brother? You're the older one, you're supposed to be the role model." 

"Hey look, it's Queen Arthur!" 

"I heard he's getting a free ride into university, what's with him? Isn't he the same age as us? 16? He's a loner loser musician plus a genuis? God, I'm jealous."

"Don't think you're better than other people just because you play the piano, got it? Trash?" 

"Classical Musicians are pretentious" 

"You're not special, you're just a little bit smarter than the average kid." 

"How do you like that, you piece of trash? No one likes loners like you." 

"You're not eating until you perfect this piece!"

"Oh him? He's just acting that way for attention, don't mind him." 

What's with the thoughts... Stop it...

My piano... Where's my piano?

Ah, there it is. 

"Everything's going to be alright." 

That female voice. 

For some reason, every time I'm near my piano I hear that voice. 

I hear that voice, yes, that voice. 

"I'm the only one who's allowed to make fun of you." 

It says bad things from time to time. 

But I got used to it. 

It's because of those insults and how it makes fun of me that I'm immune to everyone else's insults and bullying. 

Though for some reason, when I'm sad, it says good things. And those good things make me feel good. 

What an annoying piano. 

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"...A dream." 

I opened my eyes, and was greeted by the familiar scene of the pure white ceiling. 

I had woken up. 

"Morning, Arthur." 

Charlotte laid beside me, the side of her body pressing against the mattress as she looked straight in the eyes. 

She's definitely real. 

"What was the dream?" 

"Nothing important."

After waking up and getting ready, we sat in the living room. 

"Alright, I'm going to need you to turn back into a piano, I have a person coming over today." 

"Yeah yeah, I know, I see him too." 

With that said, the piano reappeared in front of me. 

But her body was still materialised. 

"You have to vanish your body to0-" 

Before I could say anything else, the doorbell rang to my apartment door. 

"Arthur, I have come once again to grace you with my presence!" 

Even though this person rang the doorbell, he still barged in, taking broad and confident steps with his chest puffed out. In all, he looked very confident and assertive. 

He was my younger brother, Lukyus. 

On his back was a violin case, he played the violin. He was also considered a prodigy when he was younger, one of the best violinists. 

He could play it like none other, any piece he played would sound completely different than if another musician played it, that was because of his skill and competence with the violin. 

He inherited the blonde hair from my father and had a very handsome face with green eyes, he always wears clothes that make him stand out like the silver buttoned shirt and a blazer with the colour and features of a violin on it. His height was right about below mine, about 6 feet tall, or 182cm, with broad and muscular shoulders. 

While I was 185cm. 

His brutish and direct personality, along with his handsome looks easily earns him an extra league against any other women. 

Only one problem. 

He's a narcissist, diagnosed when he was in grade school. 

"Thanks for coming, Lukyus, let's begin practising." 

"No no, before that, you're going to have to explain to me how a cold and dead person like you got a female friend." 

He pointed toward Charlotte.

"Yes yes, I'm Charlotte." 

She replied straightforwardly. 

"There's no way you're his girlfriend, right? You're beautiful, go out with me."

Completely ignoring my presence, Lukyus approached Charlotte and knelt in front of her going on eye-level. He took her hand and said that weird phrase. 

"Oh~ What should I do. I'll go out with you-"

"Yes-" 

"-If you look yourself in the mirror and call yourself obnoxious, unpleasant and ugly."

"Arthur, who is this ridiculous person? She's not wife material at all, let her go and I'll introduce you to better women." 

With a complete change in attitude, he stood up and leaned his hand against the piano. 

"She's Charlotte, to me she's-"

"-his girlfriend."

"-musical associate."

I turned over, facing Charlotte, giving her a no-no look. 

She mischievously raised both of her hands in surrender. 

Ignoring her, I reaffirmed what I said. 

"She's my friend." 

Lukyus looked at both of us with his eyebrows raised and shrugged his shoulders, he had already lost interest in this topic. 

The reason why he was coming over is that we were both preparing for a Pianist Violinist Duet concert and since he was playing the violin, which was a transportable instrument, it'd make sense that he'd visit me instead of me paying 300$ to move it back and forth. 

"So, for today's practice, we have an audience, huh?"

Lukyus unpacked his violin and stood beside the piano, getting into the correct posture, preparing to practice the piece. 

I too approached Charlotte, shooing her out of the piano bench so we could begin practising. 

After preparing the sheet music, we began to play. 

It was Mozart - Violin Sonata No. 21, E Minor, K. 304, a violin and piano duet. 

And as expected of the Violin expert, my younger brother played as expected. 

When we finished, Charlotte stood up and applauded. 

"Very nice, I approve! But don't use the pedal too much, you're too reliant on it. It'll drown out the melody!" 

She cheered and smiled, mostly directing it at me. 

I nodded and took note. 

"Anything to say about me?" 

Lukyus grinned, puffing out his chest pridefully, expecting something good. 

"...Eh well, your phrasing was cool, good technique vibrato and double stop technique. Obviously experienced and skilled..."

Charlotte said as she heaved a quiet sigh with a forced smile. 

Doesn't seem like she likes Lukyus. 

Well, along with me, she should also know Lukyus deeply too. 

When we were kids, Lukyus would act all haughty and entitled, which was especially when his narcissism wasn't in check. Because of his feeling of superiority, he'd abuse my piano (Charlotte) and me. 

But thankfully, his narcissistic symptoms are sort of in control now that he's about 19, a young adult. A year younger than me. 

So even though Lukyus thinks he's meeting Charlotte for the first time, in actuality, Charlotte's known him for quite a while. 

Seemingly satisfied with whatever compliments he received, he packed his stuff and left without a word, although his back was straight and his chest was still puffed out, with a cocky and satisfied expression on his face. 

He doesn't even stay to talk about the performance, that's exactly like him. 

Part 2 

"Sir, how do I do this again?" 

"This is called a thumb-tuck, you do it like this. You use it to save fingering motions. And you shouldn't be talking to me right now, face forward and look at Miss Charlotte." 

Right now, I was at a middle school teaching kids the piano, those who were interested and new. I was hired by the school to come in every few days or so. 

While in this classroom filled with kids of at least ten, I sat on the teacher's table while Charlotte was enthusiastically stood up, and with a soothing teacher-like voice, she directed the entire class. 

"Count with me, C D E F A B!" 

She wore her signature clothing of a shiny white blouse and a black skirt, her bright brown silky hair swayed like a conductor's arms as she made long motions with her arms. 

She seems like the type to go with children really well. 

Why was she teaching? 

Well, she wouldn't let me leave the apartment alone because she'd be very bored, so she followed me. After arriving, she quickly overtook my class and began teaching out of her own accord. 

"C D E F A B" 

The students repeated her words as they played the keys of the C Major Scale, their tone bright and cheerful. 

"Mr Arthur, who's that teacher you have with you?" 

A school supervisor asked me as he observed her interacting with the students. 

"My piano, she's the best one in stock." 

Hearing my comment, the corners of the supervisor's mouth extended into a grin, he giggled softly:

"Is that so? She's great teacher material, not only is she enthusiastic and nice, but she doesn't hesitate to make fun of her students either despite the age gap. A truly engaging person. You know, our school can't pay for two teachers."

Nice person, but doesn't hesitate to make fun of her students...

Reminds me of the voices when I was young, of course, now I know that it was her. 

"It's fine, she's just a person I brought along with me." 

I watched Charlotte go around and teaching the class, giving compliments and advice, she wasn't meek with her critique and criticism either, but both combined, the students seemed to love her. 

As a person who's taught this class for 2 weeks, I'm jealous. 

"Miss Charlotte, can Mr Arthur play anything?" 

I've been so inactive this lesson that the students are questioning my competence. 

"Of course he can, he's a better player than me... Come on, Sir, play us a song on the piano." 

Charlotte sweetly assured the kid, but as she looked up to look at me, she smirked, emphasising the word "sir". 

The supervisor patted my back as I approached the piano in front of the class. 

I should play something everyone knows. 

"Okay, I'll be playing Bach - Minuet in G major... It's a piece that I played consistently when I was your age."

I smiled, tilting my head and raised both my hands in a childish manner, engaging with my students. 

"Ready~? Three, two one~" 

Charlotte did the count down. 

I rested my fingers on the ivory keys, and my fingers were swayed by the wind. I gently pressed down with breezy power, a figure dancing through the air as the immaculate and neat sounds fell out of the piano. 

The otherworldly sounds echoed in the ears of all those around, like water, everything flowed smoothly with the necessary pauses and rests. 

As I was doing this, Charlotte began to hum the melody. 

"Hm mm mm mmm..." 

Not only was she a good teacher and piano player, but she was also a good singer, at least, through humming. 

All was well, the song was good, everything was in harmony. 

You missed a note, do it again. 

Huh? 

Charlotte looked over to me, giving me a tiny look of confusion as she continued to hum to the song. She's seemed to notice something was wrong in the song, as if I wasn't playing correctly anymore. 

How did you fail the competition? Did you even practise?

...Stop.

The sweet melody of the piece slowly disappeared, replaced with a brazen, loud and grating melody that slowly built up. The loudness and cruel harmony leisurely made its way up, almost like a devil in disguise.

Don't stop practising! If I catch even a glimpse of you stopping, I'll-!

...

My fingers were trembling, my hands too, a consistent shudder went down and up throughout my spine as I struggled to play according to the composer's emotions, the emotions of satisfaction, contentedness along with the feeling of tenderness.

...Those emotions were slowly dissipating, replaced by melancholy and confusion, with the feelings of brazen and cruelty. 

Nothing flowed smoothly anymore, the sounds created from the piano distorted into a tornado within a storm, blowing everything out of its path. 

There was no longer the fingers swayed by the wind, but forced by the currents. 

Just because you can play and are a little bit smarter doesn't mean you're better than anyone else. 

Stop it... Stop thinking about it, stop relapsing those memories.

Going past the original melody and notes of the piece, I subconsciously began to improvise. 

I improvised the sound of a man sitting alone in the storm, the cold winds blowing his coat away. Goosebumps forming from the cold, heat slowly draining from his body as he deadly looked toward the sky and into the rainy clouds. 

It was harsh, it was low but gentle. It was confused, it was weeping and crying. 

"...See?! Wasn't that amazing?!" 

Charlotte said as she began to enthusiastically applaud, which was followed by the children and supervisor's clapping. 

From the amazed looks of everyone around me, no one noticed it. They all seemed to be impressed and awed by the sudden influx in tension in the piece, even though there wasn't supposed to be that tension. 

As Charlotte applauded, she gave me a worried look. 

She noticed it.