Hye-jae - Book 1: New Beginnings

Sweet Reunion Part 6

Hye-won just lay, luxuriating in the intense sense of relaxation that filled her.  Each part of her body felt switched on, pulsing with powerful energy.  She was aware of her surroundings - muted noises of traffic, the soft pile of the rug beneath her heels and hands - but she allowed these moments of euphoria to take her over.  

Gradually, she revived and became aware of Seon-jae's breath beside her.  She squinted to her right to see him propped on his elbow, grinning broadly at her.  

'There you are - I thought the Goddess Venus was never going to return to the land of the living,' he cackled.  

She cuffed him playfully and laughed: 'and whose fault was it if I was off on cloud nine, hmm?'  

'I didn't hear any complaints at the time.  In fact, I seem to remember someone begging me very sexily to...'  

Hye-won muffled his words with her palms.  

'Stop it. Stop it.  Be nice.'  

'Nice.  I'm always nice.  In fact, I think I was just very nice to you, judging by the obscene behaviour I was watching.  I didn't realise you were so flexible.  Maybe you should have been a dancer, rather than a musician.  What do you think? Hmm?'  

Unmercifully though he was teasing her and as she laughingly rolled her body onto his to better cut off his words with her hand, Hye-won was so happy to see Seon-jae being Seon-jae again.  He had a wicked sense of humour.  When they had first met, she took great delight in pretending to be stiff and disapproving but his love of a laugh always won her over in spite of herself.  Now, as they tussled on the rug, the sounds of his belly laughs filled her with hope.  

This is bloody embarrassing though. 

'Right, you've had your fun.  I'm off to have a shower.  I expect a perfect gentleman to await my return.'  

'Ok ok, I'll be a good boy again by the time you return...maybe'.  

He lolled, completely at ease, beaming up at her.  Hye-won rolled herself into a seated position and hauled to her feet.  Grabbing her bag, she made for the bathroom.  

When Hye-won finished showering - two showers in one day - now that's an extreme luxury - using some of the coconut-scented body wash this time for the pure decadence of it - she changed into low-rise, faded jeans and a white, v-necked tee.  She had asked Jin-soo to buy just one or two items that she could bring with her and told her to keep them plain and non-conspicuous.  This fit the bill perfectly.  A quick slick of deodorant and some lip moisturiser and she was done.

'That was quick,' Seon-jae praised.  'I'll be 5 minutes.  Make yourself at home.  Though of course, you could say that you had already very much done that.'  

He threw the last quip gleefully over his shoulder as he walked into the bathroom and snicked the door.  You brat.  She voiced this thought through the closed door and she could hear him chuckling in response before the shower water was turned on.  

---

As Hye-won turned to look around the room again while Seon-jae showered, she was dumbfounded when her eye fell on a corner of the room with a work-desk and chair with a very nice Kawai upright alongside, the lid closed and the stool tucked beneath.  How did I not see this earlier?  I must tease Seon-jae for having a Japanese instrument though I'm sure he hadn't much choice in that.  Hye-won lifted the lid and tested the sound while standing.  A solid tone, robust in the lower register and mellower in the upper ranges.  Without thinking, she pulled out the stool and sat, intending to continue striking individual keys and random chords to test out the quality.  Almost of their own accord though, her fingers began to find patterns and before she realised, she was playing Clara Schumann's Impromptu in E, a favourite piece that she had learned as an encore work during her college years but hadn't played now for years.  She watched in amazement as her fingers flashed up and down the keyboard for the arpeggiated sections that had always thrilled her.  Hye-won had always found the piece to be elegant and sweet, romantic without being overblown.  The fact that Clara had been such a prodigy, composing and publishing her first opus by the age of eleven and touring Europe extensively giving piano concerts all through her teens - yet she is most often referred to either as the wife of Robert Schumann or the mistress of Johannes Brahms, their live-in student - had always fascinated Hye-won.  She had staged her own private rebellion as a student.  For every piece by Robert that she was required to learn, she also studied and perfected one by Clara.  These last were never performed either in concert or for auditions or competitions but they were the ones that she had played most often for her own enjoyment in her younger days.  

Now the Impromptu flowed from her.  Maybe it was how relaxed she felt at this moment that her creative spark was released but she imagined the running patterns of notes as silvery glints dancing around her, hanging in the air, replete with goodwill and genius.  She played with abandon, as she never had as a piano student.  She thought of nothing but let the sound take her over, the pleasure of the cascading music filling and surrounding her.  When the last three repeated chords echoed away, she became completely still, aware that this had been an extraordinary experience but not quite sure why just yet.

In the stillness that followed, she heard a gentle clap of appreciation.  Looking up, she saw Seon-jae leaning against the open doorway of the bathroom, dressed but barefoot, clapping slowly and quietly.  His expression was intense, somewhere between shock, admiration and love: 'Bravo Seonsaengnim -Teacher - that was out of this world.'  

As he clapped, he walked slowly towards her, an affectionate smile vying with a look of being close to tears.  Hye-won was not sure how to react.  I shouldn't have played his piano without asking.  

'I'm really sorry.  I should have waited to ask if you minded me playing.  It just sort of...happened.'  

Seon-jae stopped beside her and placed his hand on her shoulder.  

'Don't say that.  It's ridiculous.  But what is that piece?  Did you learn it for an audition?  Or a competition?'  

Somehow just now, Hye-won was feeling too emotional to explain and she just replied: 

'No, no, nothing like that.   Just a piece that I used to play for myself.  I'll tell you about it later, ok?'

Seon-jae could sense that Hye-won was struggling with some deep emotions now.  He understood this: he often felt that music filled him up in a way that he couldn't express in words.  He diverted.  

'So how do you feel?  Are you up to getting out of here for an hour, taking a walk, maybe have some food and a beer?  Whatever you like.'

Looking around, Hye-won realised that with resting and playing - well, that's what I'm going to call it -  the day was quickly getting away from them.  

'Yes, all of the above please,' she laughed.  'Lead the way.'  

'Yes Teacher,' Seon-jae countered as they walked to get their shoes inside the front door.  'Your wish is my command.  Though that does seem to be the theme for the day,' he quipped then as he slipped laughing out the door.  

She threw her shoe after him, making sure to miss.  She followed him outside and closed the door.