Virtuosity | Dreamnoblade

Chapter 5

Staring at the lines of music sitting in front of him, Dream slowly made his way through the new piece on his keyboard. The piece, called Opening, was by Phillip Glass. He had long known Phillip Glass for his solo piano pieces, but never decided to learn any of them. He knew that they were often repetitive and contained an ostinato, but he didn't think it could be this boring. The song was one continuous 2:3 polyrhythm, and the piece was 6 minutes long. He didn't know if he could perform the work and still be awake by the end of it.

Having spent multiple hours learning the song, Dream decided to do a full run-through of it. Looking at the sheet music, his finger began to play the repeating rhythms, moving from chord to chord. The song had a contemplative feel, the simplicity only adding to that feel. Playing the piece, he interjected dynamic changes to keep it exciting and added rubato to add more expression. Getting to the end of the piece, he played the final chord, slowing down until he got to the last notes, where he held them until they faded to silence. Taking his hands off the keyboard, he felt a sense of accomplishment. Quickly Dream sat up from his keyboard, making his way to the door. "Don't want to waste any more time," he said as he grabbed his keys and went to his car.

-

The blonde made his way through the packed mall, his signature green jumper practically making him a beacon. He turned and weaved through the plethora of people, trying to get to the piano as quickly as possible. He soon saw the familiar sight of the black upright. It wasn't the best piano for performing, but it would do. He sat on the uncomfortable piano stool, the leather that would typically cover it non-existent. Putting his hands on the piano, he began to play the piece he had just learned hours earlier.

As he began playing, he could feel people stopping their everyday shopping to watch himself play. Most people would become stressed at this, but he had become used to it. It was just another day for him. But he did feel something weird, almost as if someone he knew was watching him. He hoped that, if it was someone he knew, that they would bother waiting to see his face. He hadn't bothered with his white mask, not expecting to encounter anyone who may cause trouble. Still, though, he played the piece with all the emotion he could put into it. He hoped that whoever it was watching him would become bored, and leave. Besides, it was Phillip Glass he was playing. But as he continued to play, the feeling wasn't of being watched by someone you didn't want watching you, but of being watched by someone you did want watching you. He began to list all the people he may have liked to have watching him.

George. No, he's in Britain.

Sapnap. No, he's in Texas.

Bad. No, he's in Florida.

He couldn't think of anyone who could be here watching him right now. He shook the feeling and just continued to play. However, he couldn't help but feel anxious as he got closer to the end. Finishing the piece, he hoped that he would turn around and recognise no one in the crowd. But as he turned his head to look, one face stood out, long pink hair falling to the sides of their head. He quickly turned, hoping the male hadn't recognised him, as he stood up to make his way out of the mall.

"Not yet, he can't know yet," he muttered to himself.

Briskly walking towards the exit, he turned around to see whether the pink-haired man was still following him. To his relief, Techno had relented and decided to not pursue him. The crowd slowly thinned out as he got further from the main stores, and so it became easier to move through quickly. Getting out into the parking lot, he took his phone out, waiting for the inevitable message from Techno. Almost on cue, he got a message from Techno.

Technoblade – Today at 2:34PM
We need to talk.

He didn't need to respond, but he did so, telling Techno his address. What Techno wanted, Techno got, and informing him now would just save time. He got into his car and began the drive back to his house.

-

I walked up the steps, my anxiety rising at the sight of the unfamiliar area. Staring down at the dirty grey steps, I counted them, a technique an old psychologist taught me to calm my anxiety. Getting to the correct apartment, I knocked on the door. It wasn't three seconds before the door was open, a familiar man in a green hoodie and white mask greeting me. I didn't talk much as we entered the small apartment, looking around to familiarise myself with the place. Besides, I'd probably be spending much more time around here.

"Do you want anything to drink?" Dream asked me.

"No thanks, I'm good." Truthfully, I was thirsty after the running I had done earlier, but I didn't want to make him do anything.

"So, this is where you live?" I asked.

"What does it look like?"

"Hey, hey, I'm just trying to make conversation. No need to bully me," I said with a chuckle.

He sat down on the couch opposite me, trying to act comfortable, and yet I could tell he wasn't. I needed to ask him something to get him to open up.

"Why don't you play me a song? I'm sure you have a keyboard somewhere," I told him.

"Yeah, I do, in my office." He got up and began walking down a hallway, to his office, I presumed. He opened a door, and we walked in. I looked around the room, coming to terms with how loaded he really was. I wondered why he didn't have a house, but I realised it must have something to do with being in California. He sat down at his keyboard and looked like he was about to begin playing, but I stopped him before he did.

"Dream, first things first-" I said. He turned around and looked up at me, my towering figure dwarfing him. I placed my fingers at the base of the mask on his head and slowly took it off to reveal his face. His emerald green eyes looked up to me, his blonde hair and freckles making him cuter. He held his breath, waiting for me to do something, but I controlled myself.

"You don't need to wear this when I'm around~"

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Mr. Author Man here. I really do not like this chapter. I'm scared that the quality of the chapters are going to plummet following this one, so I'm sorry if you liked the previous ones but don't like this one. I normally write my chapters in one sitting, but this one took me over four. I don't know how many more chapters there are going to be. So yeah, sorry if you had higher expectations ;-;