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It was unreal. There was no better word to describe it. It felt as if no time had passed since the moment he first set eyes on the elegant young women, whose hand he now felt trembling in his. He was back on that roof. The longing to kiss her as strong as it was twelve years ago. Only this time her eyes were not fixed on him.
He followed her gaze and understood her awe. The boy could not be more than twelve years old, yet his hands moved like those of a well seasoned conductor. He could only see his back, but he knew the boys face. He knew it as if he had seen the boy a million times before. The thin lines were etched in his memory, the eyes as familiar as his own and yet this day was the first day he had seen him.
The music was coming to an end, he felt it deep within. It was a sigh, a hopeful longing, a tone that had no ending and searched for something, something … more. As the boy turned towards the crowd, the hand that was secure in his, began to squeeze his fingers. He looked at the girl that had become a woman and frowned a little. She was a musician, just like him, he was moved by the young composer as well, but in Lyla's eyes he saw something else as well. She was elated, and scared, the look on her face told him her entire future depended on this very moment and he didn't understand.
The words of the landlady echoed in his head, informing him that she was married now, yet he felt no ring on her finger. Hope began to flow. There had been a second voice on the voice mail, the thousand times he had called. Could it have been … Could it be?
She had smiled at him, a joyous smile, not one inch of guilt or regret visible in her expression. Her smile had not showed anything but pure relief and incredulous joy. Her laugh had ringed in his ears, like the chiming of silver bells. The most beautiful sound he had ever heard.
He felt his gaze being pulled back to the center stage. The boy was now looking at them. Directly staring at him, waiting, hoping. He could only nod and then a shock hit him, when he saw the boy smile as well. It was the same smile.
His head whipped back to Lyla and she looked at him. Tears were in her eyes, but she was smiling.
Her lips parted and a whisper floated his way. Amidst the sudden thunderstorm of applause that erupted, he could barely make out the words, but her lips formed the same words over and over, so there was no mistake. “My son.”
All sound faded. The clapping, the whistles, the roaring cheers, everything disappeared in that moment. My son, she had said. In his mind a puzzle became visible, the pieces coming together with such a speed that he could hardly see the empty spaces. A million questions surfaced, but all he could voice were two small words: “The roof?”
Her reply was a nod and a sob and then she began to walk, hurriedly, pulling him along. While his mind went blank from the implication, he only recognized their destination, as she began to climb the stairs. He could only see her back, the object of their apparent trajectory was hidden behind the beautiful white dress he almost stepped on. Her son, the roof, her son. It was difficult to think beyond those few words.
And suddenly he came to a halt, because she had halted, at the edge of the stage, barely visible for the crowd, but one pair of eyes was directed straight at them. Did he know? The boy? The boy he met earlier that day. A blow hit him at full force, when his mind relived the jamming session he had. They had, together. The boy who had learned to play the guitar in six months. The boy in the black tailcoat. Whose eyes now held the question that would change his world as well.
He felt a presence behind him and looked round. A man stood there, smiling, his teeth visible in his dark face. He was shaking his head, as if not believing what he was seeing. Looking back at the boy, he saw the exact moment their eyes met. The boy ran a few steps closer, his eyebrows quirked up. Looking back at the man behind him, he saw the shaking change into a firm nod and his heart jumped up.
There was nothing in his mind that could explain, he only knew, with every fiber of his body, that this one nod, answered everything the three of them ever needed to know. The boy smiled again, his eyes a little watery. The smile didn't fade this time.
Lyla knelt down, freed her hand from his grip and as he looked, she stretched her arms towards the boy. He waited not one moment, but ran into her embrace.
The vision blurred and quickly he wiped his eyes. He felt his whole life was about to change, but this time, after so many years, all the pieces were ready and he knew, with every fiber of his body, that this ending of this incredible concert, was only just the beginning.