by Levi König
This attic has always been full of mysteries and magic. To him, at least, it always felt like it was. The day he found me was no happy day, so he came up here. He knew it would cheer him up just a little bit. After all this time, I did not expect to be found again, and he certainly did not expect to find me, but both of us expected something wrong. If I could, I would have gasped in surprise just like he did. I knew I was not as pretty as I had been years ago, but the sparkle in his eyes made it clear that to him, it did not matter to him. He wavered a bit over the keys, questioning whether this was right. It was just a second before he gave in, creating – after all – was his dream. And so we will. World after world. We will create love, hatred, sorrow and so much more. This… this was home. I knew we had only touched a fraction of his imagination, lying barely on the tip of his mind. I compelled him to dig deeper. I wanted him to truly forget the pain that had caused him to come up here. I wanted to have a friend again so badly. Being alone again, for so long or even longer than before, scared me. I couldn’t tell him to stay, none of them had ever heard me. So I thought. They would not have been so cruel as not to answer or ignore my begging. Maybe I will see the downstairs again. It must have changed a lot since last time. It has been a while after all. Were it years, decades or longer? I could feel the sunbeams shining on my outer shell and reflecting back at him. If he would just take me. If I could just make him stay. But for now he will stay here continuing the stories he made up along the way, while also continuing ours. I enjoyed the soft noises my – now a bit rusty and stiff – keys made. His pace changed a lot. When he was sure, I could barely keep myself from hindering him and in the next second his fingers might lie still on the keys with his face turned to a frown. Had he made a mistake or was he simply wondering how to proceed? I will never know, given that he just started writing again without looking back. This boy raised my hopes again. He went deeper and I reawakened. His sorrow faded and my joy resurfaced. Nothing could stop him or keep me from letting him down. Or so I thought. Then, in the end, he left me, happier than before. I was left wandering the world he dreamed true, while he continued his dreams without me. I was glad that he had shared this time with me, that I managed to make someone’s aching heart better again. We both lost a loved one and returned the favours he had given us to each other.
© Levi König 2024-02-10