XPLR | Colby Brock

~19~

"Welcome," Colby said as he helped me up into the porch of this gorgeous abandoned home.

"What is this place?" I ask, smiling as I take it all in. He smirked. "Cavenaugh Mansion. Beautiful huh?"

"Gorgeous..." I say as I carefully step over the old floorboards, using the flashlight from my phone. "So you like it?" he smiled as he walked up behind me.

I smirked, he already knew I did. "I love it. It's so pretty."

"You haven't even seen the best part," he said as he nodded for me to follow him. I follow him up a spiraling staircase that I thought would collapse underneath our combined weight.

He glanced back at me when I didn't follow him on the staircase. He laughed, "Come on, do you really think that I would take you somewhere dangerous?" he asked.

I shrugged. "I don't know. I just... don't trust that wood," I laughed nervously, but smiled to lighten the mood. He reached his hand out to me. "Well do you trust me?"

I felt my face immediately get hot. That was exactly the kind of thing they said in movies! The stupid ones that make you cringe, but you love it anyway. A rush of anxiety hit my chest so fast I wasn't sure what to do.

I started to stutter and talk before I was ready. "No, yeah- I, uh...." I freeze, not sure what to say as I back away. He laughed and took my hand anyway. "Come on. I got you, I promise," he said as he started up the stairs, pulling me along.

To my surprise, I found myself following without much resistance.

Trust was something I've never been good at. I try to beat around the bush on why I'm this way, but sometimes the only thing you can be is blunt.

My father was an abusive, angry alcoholic. He was up until I moved out when I was sixteen. When I was a child, my beautiful angel of a mother taught me how to play piano. When I turned thirteen and my father's actions turned abusive, I begin to rely on piano.

All my days after school were spent in the orchestra hall in front of the old but the beautiful piano they had.

I loved that piano.

When my mother committed suicide when I was fourteen, she said it in her suicide note.

My beautiful Rose. You are going to change people with that music of yours.

And that's all I've ever wanted.