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Notes echoed through the room as his warm fingertips swayed gracefully across the cold keys, his body moving in time with the rhythm. Playing the piano grounded him, gave him some sense of normality to his otherwise abnormal life. The notes danced across his mind, painting the room in cool colors. Vivid purples and blues intermingled with soft greens and greys, swirling together to create the picture inside his mind. The notes harmonized with each other, as did the various pigments plaguing his vision.The sound of a door slamming brought him out of his thoughts, his fingers crashing down on the wrong keys, ruining his piece and muddling the colors in his mind.“Who’s there?”“Sorry, I didn’t know anyone was in here. It’s normally empty,” came the reply from the other side of the room.Normally he would have been upset that someone interrupted his playing, interrupted his vision, but the voice that echoed off the walls of the dim practice room made a flicker of color flash across his vision. Green. Definitely green. Green like house plants left in the corner of a room or the blades of grass billowing in the breeze. Green like the leaves on maple trees in the middle of summer, warmed up by the golden rays of the sun. He had never experienced a voice like this, not in any of his vocal classes, not passing by someone on the street or while picking up a coffee from the local cafe. The deep timbre of the unknown man standing across the room made Kun’s hairs stand on end, as if they were craning towards the voice as well. He felt trapped all of a sudden, not knowing how to process what he was feeling. No one’s voice had ever caused the flash of color that he just experienced, he needed to get out, some fresh air would surely help.“It’s okay, I was just leaving.” Standing up, Kun grabbed the cane leaning up against the wall beside him, maneuvering his way from behind the bench and over to where the voice had come from.“No, you were clearly here first, I can just go find another practice room. It’s really no big deal, man.” The unidentified man grabbed at the metal handle of the door, only stopping when Kun spoke up.“It’s really okay. I was planning on leaving.” Kun grabbed his backpack up off the floor and swung it over his shoulder, his cane in his other hand guiding him towards the door. “You know, most people don’t come up to this part of the building.” Keep calm. Just enough conversation to not be rude, but also try to get out as quickly as possible. “I-I know. I just needed the quiet to help with this.” He picks up the guitar case in his hand and wiggles it slightly.Kun couldn’t help but laugh softly at the clanking sound of some sort of case being moved around. “In case you haven’t noticed, you’re gonna have to be more specific.” he said, waving his cane out in front of him.“Oh! Right, sorry…” the other man’s face flushed in embarrassment, “I have to write a piece on the guitar for my composition class.” Now was his chance to get out of here. If the man wanted quiet, that’s what he was going to get.“Good luck with that, I’ll leave you to your practicing now. Have a nice day.” Kun hitched his bag up higher on his shoulder, pushing his way past the other student.“Johnny.” He blurts out. “Um, my name is Johnny.” He watches as Kun stops in his tracts for a moment.“Have a nice day, Johnny.” Kun smiles back at him before leaving the room, letting the door slam behind him. Johnny stands there alone in the empty white space.Kun walks back to his apartment, dropping his bag next to the door before slipping his shoes off, letting his cane rest against the door. Being back at school was exhausting, everyday life seemed overwhelming; the sound of doors shutting, other instruments being tuned, cars honking, planes flying overhead. They all fought for control, each one of them their own color palette; beautiful on their own, but when mixed together, they turned a mucky shade of brown and never failed to give him a headache. His doctor had warned him of the possibility, but that didn’t change the fact that it was new and unexpected.His stomach growled as he wandered into the kitchen, searching for a snack in the fridge. He hated this, hated how everything was still so difficult. He missed cooking, it was one of the things he was going to have to relearn. For now he’d have to settle for something simple. Grabbing an apple from the drawer, he shut the fridge and shuffled over to his couch, smiling softly at his cat who rubbed up against his calf before jumping up on his lap, the bell on its collar ringing softly. Red. Sweet. Bright smiles on a warm day. Eyes sparkling in the sun. Loud laughs and inside jokes.
…
The next morning Kun headed out earlier than normal, stopping by the store on his way to class to find some noise cancelling headphones. Anything to make his school life more bearable. Thankfully it was quiet once he stepped inside, making it easier for him to find an employee to ask for some help.“Sir, is there anything I can help you with?” A soft voice came from his right side.“Could you tell me where your noise cancelling headphones are?”“Sure, I can bring you there if you’d like?” The employee reached out to grab his arm and lead him towards the display, but Kun recoiled out of instinct.“I don’t need to be guided. Can you please just tell me where they are?” he snapped. He hated being treated like he was incapable of doing things for himself, the pitying looks people gave when they saw his cane, how they immediately tried to reach out and touch him, the way their voice pitched up as if he were a small child who wandered too far from his parents and needed an adult to help get back to them.“I-I’m sorry. If you just keep going straight all the way to the back of the store, you’ll find them there.”He walked away, seeing only black in his mind. It’s always black, he thinks bitterly, his frustration bubbling up inside him. Black. Black like the night sky...No, that was blue. Black. Black. Blackblackblackblackblackblack. Everything is always black. You think you see black when you close your eyes, but it isn’t until you’ve lost your vision that you truly discover what black is. He abruptly stopped when he feels his cane bump against someone’s foot.“Oh, hey! It’s you! Sorry, I never got your name the other day. You left before I could ask, so I’ve kinda just been calling you piano man in my head, since you play the piano, ya know? Anyways thanks again for letting me use that practice room. Not that it really helped, cause I’m still stuck on my piece, but that doesn’t matter I’ll figure something out. What are you doing here anyways?” Johnny rambled on, not giving Kun the chance to speak. “This is my favorite time to come shopping. It's so quiet ya know? I always stop by here before classes for the day so I can grab some snacks and stuff. Oh, hey are you thinking about getting those headphones?”“Oh yeah, I guess…campus is too loud, so I need something to block out the noise.” Kun mumbles.“If you’re looking for a good pair, these are the ones I use!” Johnny grabs the headphones from his hands and replaces them with a smaller and more compact box. “These work really well, plus they’re wireless so you don’t have to worry about getting all tangled up in a cord.”“Thank you,” Kun fiddled with the box in his hand, slightly overwhelmed by Johnny’s loud persona.“Do you need a ride back to campus? Or do you live off campus? I can bring you back if you’d like. It beats walking out in the rain.”“Oh, it’s raining?” Kun listened closely, the sound of heaving drops pittering on the ceiling, creating a soft hum that echoed throughout the store. He counted the beats in his head, 1 2 3 1 2 3 1 2 3, the rain fell like triplets, creating a melody all their own, nature’s own symphony.“Yeah it’s getting pretty nasty out there. It’s supposed to get worse as the day goes on. I’m heading over to the music building to practice some more, so really, it you want a ride, I don’t mind.” Though he can’t see Johnny smiling, he can hear the inflection in his voice. He hated feeling like an inconvenience to others, but it was also raining and did he really want to be caught out in that? It was at least a 15 minute walk to the edge of campus, plus another 10 to get to the music building. “Seriously, man. I really don’t mind.”“Yes, thank you. I just need to buy these first,” Kun smiled in Johnny’s direction. It was as if he could see straight into his mind. In reality, he probably just saw the perplexed look on Kun’s face.“Great!”The walk up to the registers was surprisingly silent, Johnny either had nothing to talk about or was just letting Kun appreciate the sound of the rain. He can feel the pitying look the cashier is giving him as he fumbles for his card in his wallet. Johnny realizes it too, fidgeting uncomfortably next to him. Kun is used to the stares.Johnny grabbed Kun’s arm and pulled him towards the his car. For once, Kun is thankful for the hand on his arm. The rain was pouring down in fat drops, long gone was the sound of the triplets, in their place a bass drum beat menacingly. The slamming of the car door pulled Kun from his thoughts. He settled into the passenger seat, his bag sitting atop his feet, and his cane folded up in his lap. He heard Johnny start the car, the engine roaring to life.“Wow some storm, huh?” Johnny asks, pulling out of the parking lot and onto the empty streets, the wipers working furiously to keep up with the rains tempo. “So uh, you know what, I still don’t know your name.”"Kun. My name’s Kun.”“That’s an interesting name. Where are you from?”“China. I moved here for school two years ago.”“That’s so cool! I’m just from Chicago,” Johnny’s laugh reverberated through the car, drowning out the sound of the rain outside. “What are you studying? Something to do with the piano, I assume.”“Music Composition, actually. My focus is on the piano though. What about you?”“Man, you’re out here majoring in my weakest subject,” he laughs again. “I want to be a music teacher. Seeing kids light up when they play a piece correctly after practicing so hard makes me feel like it’s worth all the struggling I’m going through. Anyway, where did you need me to drop you off at?”“The music building is fine. I’ll probably just practice until my first class starts.”“Yeah I feel that. I still gotta figure out what I’m even doing for my composition class. I swear I can play music, but writing it, I feel like an idiot.” Kun barked out a laugh, eyes curling up into crescent moons, as his body shook from laughing so hard. It felt good to laugh like this. He can’t remember the last time he heard his own laughter, it sounded so foreign to him, like he was outside his own body watching someone else take control.“Sorry, I shouldn’t laugh.” He says as a few more giggles slip out. “You just sounded so serious, and I imagine your face looked serious, but I don’t have a clue what you look like. I just have this vague image in my mind. Sorry if that didn’t make sense. You might have to be blind to get the joke.” The shocked look slips off Johnny’s face as he laughs along with him this time.The car rolled to a stop, Johnny placing it in park and unlocking the doors. The rain beat harder against the windows, sharp staccato notes, hitting the glass with precision, like a drummer tapping at the edge of his snare. They sat in silence, Johnny unbuckled his seatbelt and reached towards the backseat to grab his backpack, Kun unfolded his cane, one hand on the handle of the door.“Thanks for the ride, Johnny. I really appreciate not having to walk through the rain.”“Like I said before, it’s no problem. Do you need any help getting inside?”“No.” Kun lashed out, reverting to his defensive state. “No, sorry. I…I didn’t mean to snap.”“It’s okay, I’m sure you’re sick of people treating you like you can’t do anything. I would have probably done the same.”“It’s just…frustrating sometimes. People always think you need help, or that you can’t do anything for yourself. It gets really old, really fast is all.” Kun trailed off slowly, letting his voice get consumed by the rain. He pushed open the door, feeling the cool water cascade down his hand. Grabbing his bag, he ran up the steps of the music building to the awning at the doors. “Thanks again Johnny!”“Wait! Can we maybe hang out sometime?” Johnny yelled from the trunk of his car.“Maybe....” Kun paused for a moment thinking it through. On one hand, he had exactly zero friends, it would be nice to have someone to talk to or do things with. On the other hand, he hated feeling like a problem towards other people. If they hang out, Johnny would always be the one driving, he would have to help Kun if they went anywhere unfamiliar, he’d have to read off the menus for him at restaurants. This is why you have no friends. “I’d really like to hang out sometime. You seem like a nice guy! I’ll even let you talk about compositions, even if they are the bane of my existence!”“If you can find me later, we can hang out,” Kun decided. “Bye Johnny!”Just as quick as he appeared that morning, Kun was gone, already heading up the stairs within the building. This morning may have started off black, but as Kun found his favorite practice room and placed his fingers on the keys of the piano, everything was a pale yellow. Yellow like baby chicks in the spring, yellow like the sun on a cool morning, yellow like the roses outside his mother’s house back home.