Krystal Chapter 06 – Music By Harrod200 Copyright © 2006 by Harrod200 of Orbital One. All rights reserved.				Email Codey’s World
Home	Up	Prev	Next	Email	Discuss

The warm sun and humid air took my breath when I stepped out of the garage door. The home’s garden was pretty large, mostly a large grassy area extending from the back, with a smaller patio area along the side by the garage door. Around the edge was a brick wall about 7’ high, the only break I could see was a double wooden gate positioned on the wall by the front of the building, presumably to let any vehicles in that needed to do work.

In the middle of the field were most of the boys I’d seen involved in a game of football, half wearing shirts the other half shirtless playing between a set of plastic goal posts set just about in line.

“Hey guys,” a black-haired shirtless boy a couple of years older than me said as he jogged over to us, “Mark’s team is down by 1, you two go with him and we’ll take Krystal.”

Sam and Greg both ran off to the other end of the makeshift pitch.

“Chris Krohn.” The older boy stated and offered his hand as we jogged towards our goal.

“Kris Longley.” I replied and quickly shook his hand.

“Cool, drop your shirt by the goal and play wherever you want.” With that he sprinted off towards the ball.

I stopped by the goalposts and hesitated. The scars on my chest and back weren’t exactly discrete, if it was just the ones on my back I could probably be ok, but the one on my chest made it look like someone had totally cut me open.

“Um, hey you’re Krystal aren’t you?” The boy who was in our goal asked after I’d stood there for a moment.

“Wha? Oh yea, Kris Longley.” I replied and offered my hand as I was brought back to reality.

At first the boy eyed my hand a little suspiciously for a moment before timidly taking it. “Jay, Jay Edwards.” He quickly released my hand and looked a bit nervous. Great, I guess not everyone believes that I’m not him.

I decided I’d have to get my shirt off sometime and get in the game and in one quick movement pulled it off over my head. When I cleared my face Jay’s eyes were wide and running up and down the scar on my chest.

When he noticed I was watching him he looked a little embarrassed and afraid and turned away. I tried to ignore his reaction, it was what I had expected, fear at my reputation and staring at the line that pretty much split me in two. Even when I jogged onto the makeshift pitch I could feel him examining the scars on my back.

On the pitch I noticed a few more people staring at me and it was getting a bit unnerving. Most of the communication going on was shouting for the ball or one person telling another what to do, it wasn’t until I’d been brought down in a fowl that anyone really spoke.

“Sorry, man.” The boy who had fouled me said as he offered his hand to help me up.

“S’ok” I replied and grabbed his hand.

“That’s a pretty cool scar you’ve got there. Oh sorry, I’m Mark Krohn.”

“Kris Longley, and I don’t see what’s so good about this.” I said in a slightly depressed tone and looked at the pinkish line marking me, “Everyone just keeps staring at it.”

“That’s just ‘cos they’ve never seen one so big before, the biggest most people here have seen is when they had their appendix out, yours is…it looks like someone’s totally opened you! Trust me, it’s cool.” He ended with a smile. I’m not sure how looking like someone tried to perform surgery on me with a butcher’s knife is cool. One thing I was sure of though is that I had to get away from the people and the stares.

“I’m going back inside, seeya later.” I replied and ran inside, grabbing my shirt on the way.

‘Why do I always have to be the focus of everyone’s attention?’ I asked myself as I trudged past the weight bench. ‘I just want to be able to have fun without being singled out. Why? Why can’t I just be normal?’ I let out a short frustrated shout and hurled the closest thing to hand, which happened to be a dumbbell into the wall, leaving a dent in the breezeblock. I closed my eyes tightly and shook my head to try to clear it and regain some control, it worked, barely.

I walked out of the garage and up the stairs to my room. I was just passing the first door when something stopped me.

The sound of a guitar from inside held me in place and as I listened I felt myself slightly relax. As the speed and rhythm of the sound changed I felt myself getting calmer and calmer. By the end of whatever song it was being played I was slumped against the wall next to the door with my eyes closed, feeling alright. I couldn’t stop my curiosity from controlling me and before I knew it I was knocking on the door.

“Yea?” a boy’s voice from inside called.

“Um, hey.” I said as I pushed the door open, “Was it you playing just now?”

“Yeah, why? You don’t like it? Well I do, I can’t play very often so just let me play what I like now ok?” the boy I recognised to be Davey replied in an exasperated tone.

“Huh? Oh no, I liked it. What was it?” I quickly reassured him,

“Really?” he asked, shocked “It was Bon Jovi, you really liked it? Everyone else just comes in and tells me to play something ‘good’.”

“Yeah, I dunno why I just like it.”

“See how much you like this one.” He smiled and rummaged through a draw, finally pulling out a piece of paper and setting it on the bed and putting a cassette in the small tape player next to him. After a few moments he began to play.

The sounds of both the recorded and Davey’s guitars filled the room and I felt myself drifting away into the music again.

“What was that one?” I asked once the song had finished and I had snapped out of my mini-trance.

“An old Coldplay song, ‘Why does it always rain on me’. Some of their stuff is really good to play.” He replied, his slightly dreamy voice telling me he got taken away in the music too. “Do you play?” he asked after a few minutes of comfortable silence.

“N…” I began to say no but then realised I really had no idea. The weights caught my interest and I instantly knew how to do everything the moment I laid down, I was having a similar attraction to the guitar, “I don’t know. I can’t remember.” I finished after a sigh. How quickly the depression rushes back after you’ve escaped it.

“That’s ok, do these look familiar?” he asked and passed me a sheet of paper with guitar tabs printed on it.

I looked at the marking for a few moments but nothing immediately jumped at me-they just looked like a bunch of random lines and letters. I shook my head.

“Ok, come here.” He said and indicated for me to sit next to him on the bed. When I sat down he pulled the strap from over his head and put the guitar into my hands. “Does anything feel familiar?” He asked while he moved my hands into a playing position.

“I don’t know.” I sighed, “There’s something, oh I don’t know.” I handed the guitar back to Davey and rested my head in my hands. After a few moments a new melody started to fill the room, again my thoughts and fears evaporated and were replaced with a simple comfort in the notes coming from the instrument.

“You could always learn from the beginning you know.” He said in a soft, absent voice while he played.

“How did you learn?” I felt my voice ask in the same tone.

“Self taught, I just picked it up as I went along.”

“Do you think you could teach me?”

“I don’t know, I could try.”

“Thanks.” The entire last part of the conversation had a surreal quality, as if neither of us were really there, we were watching from a distance. It felt a little like when I was in my room with Dr. Sierra earlier but now I felt comfortable with it. After a few minutes I opened my eyes.

***

The comfortable sunshine fell onto my bare, unscarred chest and the light breeze blew my hair slightly as I stood up. Something was different though. Any other time I’d been at the meadow it had been pretty much silent except for the breeze blowing through the grass, now though there was a feint sound of music being carried on the wind.

I walked towards the sound, to the crest of the small hill. Below I saw a stream running around the base of the hill and figure sitting on a rock in the middle. As I moved closer the figure didn’t move, but continued playing his guitar.

“Hello?” I called out when I reached the edge of the stream. No answer.

“Hello?” I tried again, with no luck.

Stepping into the stream I found it was only a couple of inches deep here. As I approached the rock I circled around to see who it was who was playing. The face of the musician was totally vague; no distinguishing features at all, almost as if he were out of focus.

I reached to tap the musician’s shoulder but when I was about halfway across his hand met mine, our fingers interlocking. He turned to face me and opened his eyes.

***

The last notes of the song Davey was playing echoed around the room.

“What did you see?” A voice asked as I exhaled deeply and dropped my head slightly.

“Peace.” I replied simply and opened my eyes. Andrew was sat on the bed opposite and Davey was still ‘away’.

Andrew nodded in understanding and closed his eyes.

“Don’t dismiss what you see Krystal, every one has a meaning.” He said peacefully as I walked towards the door. Somehow I knew that there was no response necessary and stepped onto the landing. There was something different about how I felt, I couldn’t put my finger on any one thing that had changed, I just felt…different.

I opened the door to my room and laid on my bed. I drifted off into a peaceful sleep for the first time since I arrived.

***

I woke up at around 5 o’clock according to my alarm, feeling refreshed and also far more peaceful. Andrew was leaning on the banister outside his room when I stepped out.

“How did you know?” I asked him as I stood next to him.

“I’ve been there. I know how someone looks and feels when they’re at their comfort zone.”

“How someone feels?” I asked confused,

“Don’t ask,” he chuckled, “You wouldn’t believe it anyway so just think of me as very perceptive.” He smiled, then walked away.

At about that time the twins ran in from the garage and vanished into the TV room. I walked slowly down the stairs and across the common room. When I got into the TV room I saw GG and Adrian already playing on the PlayStation and the twins on the sofa watching them.

“Hey where’d you go?” Sam asked as I sat down next to them.

“Yea, we looked everywhere and couldn’t find you.” Greg added.

“I was listening to Davey play, he’s pretty good.”

“If you like that sorta music yeah, but he only ever plays really old stuff from like ages ago, never any good stuff.” Sam complained,

“I liked it.”

“That ancient junk? You seemed relatively normal before but now I’m not so sure!” Sam teased.

“It’s relaxing.” I explained simply,

“Whatever,” Sam dismissed while shaking his head and rolling his eyes, “It’s nearly time for dinner, wanna come annoy Cynthia while she cooks?” He asked with a glint of mischief in his eye.

“Annoy how?”

“You’ll see, come on.” Both twins pulled me up and dragged me out of the room.

“Cynthiaaaa…” Sam and Greg both called together as we entered the dining room. A few pots clattering and a sigh echoed over the sound of cooking and we sat at the counter.