Solangelo Oneshots

TWENTY ONE

  Note: Imagine Nico working in a place where you get to rent a room of your choice where you just get to relax. It can be private with just you, or public with either a team of people helping you out or just one person.

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   Nico examined his long fingers, bored out of his mind. Today was a particularly slow day, it seemed like as time passed, fewer people had the urge to just wind down and listen to some tranquil piano melodies. Nico stretched, his back stiff from the last client who had insisted on staying for an hour, all while requesting music throughout his entire stay. Even as he slept.

  Shaking his head at the thought, he got up from the bench and made his way to get a drink of water. 

  Nico decided to relax for a couple of minutes until someone else came in, sitting down at the sofa where the clients would usually sit. He took a deep breath, playing with the ring on his finger. A small memory flashed across Nico's mind as he was reminded of someone else who used to do that.

  Nico knew it was going to be painful afterwards, but he relished the memory for a while. He relished the feeling of skin on skin, the way the other set of fingers playing with his would trace over the small scars and twist the ring time and time again for sheer amusement. Nico wouldn't admit it but he missed small kisses on his hand,  he missed having someone to play for, someone who he cared about.

  And that's exactly why he stopped thinking about it all, getting up from his position of comfort. He wouldn't fall back into that endless storm, Nico had finally started to move on, finally started to enjoy playing piano for others again. Even if it wasn't him.

  Nico sat down at the piano bench once again, fingers aimlessly flitting over the keys without actually making a sound. He groaned in frustration at how weak he was and threw his head back, hands gripping onto the back of the bench.

  The sound of a door opening and closing alerted Nico, sending him back into his "professional" stance. Back straight, fingers perched ready, head facing forwards.

   A low, familiar voice rang out clearly behind him, "Hey there."

  Nico stiffened, just for a moment, before realizing there was no way it was the person who he was thinking about. Nico shuffled the papers in front of him and spoke, "Hi, what can I interest you in today? If you'd like you can look through these papers, if not you can request a song and I'll see if I know it." Nico hoped this person wouldn't pick a song he didn't know.

  While it was a part of his job to know songs, Nico was used to having people book an appointment beforehand and telling him the song so that he could practice. Or having regular clients who he knew well enough to pick the song for them. He was not used to walk ins. 

  "How about Kiss the Rain? By Yiruma?"

  Nico couldn't believe it. Okay, that was okay. This stranger just happened  to sound like the person he used to be in love with and he just happened  to know the song they used to play together sometimes. The only song he knew, the only song Will Solace, the love of his life, knew.

  Nico nodded, responding vocally after stupidly realizing that this person couldn't see his small gesture.

  Before beginning to play, Nico shifted ever so slightly to the right, enough so that 2 people could sit. Nico was hoping and praying this person wasn't who he thought he was but he so desperately wanted him to be.