"No, it sounds muddy if you hold it down that long." I scoot over so Melody can demonstrate how to use the pedals again. It sounds so smooth and harmonious when she does it, while it sounds like a group of feral cats are running across the keys when I do it. "Press the pedal down right after you press on the keys, then let go after the chord finishes."

I try again. My foot apparently doesn't want to cooperate with my hands, and they go out of sync after a couple bars.

"There are too many things to focus on simultaneously," I groan.

"You don't have to focus on it that much, it's also just intuition," she adds.

"Mel," I whine, "I don't have the same kind of intuition you do. Literally no one does besides the top pianists in the world." I try not to forget that I should be grateful. I'm sure most pianists would kill for the opportunity to have private lessons taught by Melody.

She laughs and lightly nudges me. "I'll take that as a compliment. I think we're done for today."

I help shut the piano and follow her over to the sofa. Before we've even finished debating over what show to watch, Mr. Carter steps into the living room. "Ms. Aria? The movers are here."

Two large guys wearing ripped, dusty blue jeans and orange t-shirts with some moving company's logo on the back walk in. They're pushing a small flatbed cart towards the piano.

"I'm donating the piano," Melody explains to me, "I never even meant to buy it and can't keep it."

I feel my stomach sink. I've been having so much fun with Melody that I'd forgotten that this couldn't last, it was never going to. She's not staying in Toronto, she needs to go home and move on with her life. I'm going to have to move on with my life. The idea of her leaving and never getting to see her again is practically unimaginable.

This was just a break for her. A time to do whatever and relax. Was I just another project for her to work on? I wish I could talk to her about it, but what am I supposed to say? Please don't leave, stay here instead. I refuse to sound that desperate to anyone.

She's an incredibly talented world famous musician. Why would she ever do that for some guy she's known for a month?

As much as I hate to admit it, I've developed some... feelings for her. Acknowledging that makes me feel like a goddamn lovesick, teenage girl.

"Hey," Melody whispers, lightly touching my arm. She looks up at me with wide and concerned eyes. "You ok? You looked kind of out of it."

"Oh, uh yeah." I nod quickly. "I was just thinking about how I'm going to miss our piano sessions."

"Aw me too," she says, lightly squeezing my arm. "We can still practice on campus though."

Not exactly the same, but at this point, I'll take what I can get. "Do you think we could, uh," I try to keep my tone casual but I know my emotions are probably showing already. "Talk? About... you know-"

She clears her throat and checks her phone. "I um, don't have time," she mumbles, looking at me but not meeting my eyes. "Mr. Carter and I were going to go to the music school to meet the lady in charge there."

I wish I could read her expression, but it's clear she's spent most of her life learning to keep herself poised. A graceful pianist, avoiding any actions that would draw too much attention to her when she retreated from the public eye. If she really wants to hide how she's feeling, there's definitely no way I'd be able to see through her perfectly controlled guise.

"Ah...I see." I try to hide the disappointment in my tone.

Once again, I feel like an idiot. Maybe I should stop trying to bring it up, I'm coming on so strong. The last thing I want to do is scare her away and lose her, even if I have so little of her. It's as if she's a desert and all I have is a handful of sand, rapidly slipping through my fingers.

"Do you want to come along?" I've barely nodded before she turns around and quickly heads to the front door.

-----

Melody and Mr. Carter are already there by the time I arrive. They must've taken the carpool lane. I've tried talking to him about it multiple times, but Mr. Carter still refuses to let Melody ride in my car.

The music school is very charming and sweet. Throughout the lobby, there are lots of colorful posters, pictures of kids playing, murals painted onto the walls, and awards students here have won. It's also been decorated with lots of bright Christmas decorations.

Don't let the appearance fool you though, I looked it up online on my way here. Cristofori Music Academy is one of the most prestigious music schools for kids in the continent. Plenty of famous musicians studied here. They even have their own line of instruments and music books.

"Good evening." A woman with greying hair and glasses perched low on her nose looks up at us from behind her desk. "Can I help you?"

Melody approaches the desk. "I'm looking for Lauren, I spoke with her on the phone earlier about a piano donation."

"That would be me." A woman with dark straight hair and wearing a light grey dress gives us a cheerful smile as she enters the lobby. She extends her hand to shake Melody's hand. "Nice to meet you, Melody, was it?"

"That's me."

Lauren has a thoughtful look on her face for a moment. "Melody? As in, Melody...Ar-" She quickly shakes her head as she quietly trails off. "Err, never mind."

The front doors open again, letting in a rush of cold air. The flat-bed's wheels rattle against the tiles as the movers push the piano inside. "Where would you like this?" One of the movers pushing the piano asks in a gruff tone.

"Right this way." Lauren begins walking down a hall, tilting her head to signal us to follow along too.

As we walk down the long carpeted halls, I look at the pictures on the walls. Mostly spotlights on some of the impressive things the alumni from the school have done. Lauren looks at us, slightly embarrassed. "Thank you so much for this. Our piano department isn't what it used to be. It's a shame really, we've had to turn away so many students interested in piano." She shakes her head sadly.

I wonder why.

We enter a small room. There are a couple cushioned chairs by the door, piano notes painted on the blue walls, and a big window that looks out towards the snowy sidewalk. Against one of the walls is an upright piano. It looks like it's seen better days, the dark brown wood is worn and faded in some areas. The leather bench has a couple rips, and the legs look scratched. The movers get to work, easily slipping the piano off the cart and switching it with the old one.

"Hi." We turn towards the high pitched voice coming from the doorway. There's a little girl peeking in. I blink in disbelief a couple times, she's the spitting image of Melody. Small, light blonde hair with big hazel eyes. I glance at Mr. Carter, he has the same expression on his face. "Ms. Wong?" She turns to Lauren. "Is Mrs. Beth coming? She's not in the room."

"Oh Melissa, I'm so sorry, Mrs. Beth is sick today. I called your mom and left a message, she must've not heard it in time," Lauren says, worried creases appear on her forehead. "Let me call her again to pick you up, we can go wait in the lobby for her."

I guess she wasn't exaggerating when she said the piano department was in bad shape.

Melody chews on her lip nervously, looking at the piano. I can definitely tell what she's thinking right now.

"Go for it, Mel." I gently pat her back.

"I would be happy to give a lesson," Melody speaks up, albeit a little shyly.

Lauren's face lights up. "Oh that'd be wonderful Melody, thank you so much!" She places her hand on Melissa's shoulder and leads her into the room. "This is Melissa, she's five and has been taking lessons here for a year now."

She climbs onto the bench while Melody pulls up a chair next to her. Mr. Carter and I settle into the chairs as they begin their lesson. Melody has her play a couple scales and they begin on a song. I feel a twinge of embarrassment and jealousy. I'm nearly four times her age and her talent is miles ahead of mine.

I prop my elbow onto the armrest and rest my chin on my fist as I watch Melody. It's nice to see her step out of her comfort zone like this. She's such a kind and attentive teacher - not that I didn't already know that. Cheerful praises get a smile out of Melissa every time and gentle corrections are met with confident nods and improvement. Melody's a natural.

Mr. Carter chuckles softly and I hear him murmur, "Adorable, Cole."

I raise an eyebrow. "What is?" I whisper.

He gives me a knowing grin. "You clearly have feelings for her."

I feel heat rush to my face. "That's none of your business," I grumble, slouching and crossing my arms.

"You should tell her." He nudges me with his elbow.

"Boys," Melody says sternly, looking over at us. "Please be quiet."

"Sorry," we both say simultaneously. She tries to stifle a laugh and returns to the lesson.

Maybe Mr. Carter's right.

--------------------

Melody needs to talk 😭 Although I can relate to struggling with those things 😭

Thanks for reading!