They had been walking down the street when she noticed it. It was the same street they walked down about every day. His words would falter when he spoke, and his eyes would dart off somewhere to the side. One day, she decided to follow his gaze.
Beautiful. Sitting daintily in the shop window, its wood polished and the design completed with careful attention from its maker. It was a deep red color, one that reminded her of the flames that would sometimes dance from his fingertips that entertained him when he was bored.
She had to get it for him.
So, after scraping up enough money, she finally, finally managed to buy it. Excitedly, she ran home and placed it in a box as dark as his hair, as dark as the usual shirt he wore when they were together. After topping it off with a bow, she waited. Eagerly, she sat on the couch with lying across her lap.
It was about an hour later when he finally arrived. The front door shut noisily behind him, and he shook out the flakes of snow that had begun to cling to his hair.
"You would not believe what just- What are you holding?" His voice was deep, it rumbled in his chest as he spoke. Cassy shivered, but it wasn't from the cold. With a small, hesitant smile, she swiped one of the throw pillows from the couch and reached over to pat the spot it had previously occupied. Looking quite wary to say the least, Damien approached, his eyes darting about as if he'd be able to spot a hidden camera.
"Is this a prank?" He inquired, sitting down in such a manner that made it seem that he was ready to bolt at a moment's notice. Rolling her eyes, Cassy simply thrusted the box into his lap and leaned closer with a timid smile.
"Open it," she urged with excitement coating each syllable that passed her lips. He chuckled at her enthusiasm and reached over to push away a stray curl that had fallen over her face.
"You're so cute like this," he purred, only to burst into a violent round of laughter when she threw one of the other throw pillows directly at his face. "Okay okay okay! Yeesh, I'll open it!" His smile reaching up to his eyes, as it had never done before they met, he began to push open the lid.
At first, what he saw made him freeze. The smile dropped, and his hands lay stagnant where they lay. He could vaguely see her lean closer, wringing her hands nervously. But he couldn't focus on that.
Because right there, right before him, lay a perfectly polished violin. The bow rested carefully in its own case. It called to him, begged for him to pick it up and create the music that had been lost for so long.
He could hear Cassy talking, rushing out to explain herself, but he couldn't make out the words. Not until she touched his arm and used her other hand to guide his face to look at her.
"Do you like it?" She asked hesitantly. She had been prepared for some form of rejection. For some sort of panic to have entered his eyes. What she didn't expect was for him to place the box on the empty spot next to them and sweep her up into his arms with a cry nothing short of absolute joy.
Cassy released a startled cry upon being lifted into the air. Within seconds, she had thrown her arms around his neck to help keep herself upright. Her hair seemed to float around them in a gorgeous golden pool as he spun her around, planting kiss after kiss after kiss onto every inch of skin he could reach without being provacative. His grip was tight around her, even as his foot caught and he fell back onto the couch. Even then, he didn't cease in showering her with kisses, not until the urge to play grew to be too much for him to ignore.
With one last kiss, he set her back in her original place and brought the violin into his lap.
"So you like it?" She asked, tucking her hair behind her ears. He grinned at her, looking loose and free in ways she had never imagined him to be before.
She had hoped he would like it. She really did. She'd worked hard for this gift! She just also hoped that it wasn't tied to any painful memories.
Warmth blossomed in her chest at his answer, and a grin of her own spread across his lips. He liked- no, he loved it! He really did love it! She went to say more, to tell him not to worry about the price, but he cut her off with another kiss.
"But I could never love it as much as I love you," he murmured seriously, his gaze searching hers in a manner so intimate even she felt her face flood with heat. Laughing at the blush that coated her cheeks, he turned away. His bangs flopped deliciously over his face as he bent over the violin, cocking his head to the side so he could tune it.
"Play for me," Cassy spoke suddenly, and his head jerked up in surprise.
"Play for you?" He echoed, eyes wide. When she nodded, he smiled timidly before he turned, hiding behind his hair so that she didn't see the tears that had slightly built up in his eyes. "No one's ever asked to hear me play before," he whispered, voice soft. Like a child who had finally been acknowledged for something they were proud of.
"My parents thought it was just some stupid way to throw away time," he went on to say, and he smiled to let her know that he was okay. Of course he was okay. He'd always be okay, with her there. She was the light that illuminated his flames. She lit his way. She made the dark a less scary place. He was... Well, he was simply the fire that burned and burned and burned until nothing stood where he had gone.
"Your parents were monsters," she said immediately, rage shimmering in her eyes at the thought of what they had done to their son. His smile turned sad then, and he reached over to bring her into a gentle kiss.
"But they were still my parents," he whispered, and it took a few moments for the lump in his throat to go away. Once it was gone, he lifted the instrument to his shoulder and rested his chin on the pad provided for him.
From then on, it was a mixture of muscle memory and pure excitement for the passion that had been locked away for so many years. His fingers glided along the neck of the violin, his hand guiding the bow through the strings so that the beautiful melody he'd yearned to play for years could finally be heard by someone other than the little boy with black hair who had just wanted someone to call a friend.
The song in itself screamed Damien. It was haunting, it was beautiful. It started out slow, started out with minor notes and a melancholy feel that both hypnotized and saddened the blonde that sat alongside its creator. But then, it began to pick up speed. Damien bobbed along with the beat to the song, and Cassy bubbled with laughter as he jumped from the couch and began to dance about the livingroom. Unable to help herself, Cassy jumped up and created her own little dance.
Grinning from ear to ear, Damien stopped near the wall and watched her dance. Though he didn't focus on the swaying of her hips, or the way she moved so lithely across the carpet. No, his eyes zeroed in on how... Happy she looked. How free she was to be herself. She didn't care if she messed up. It didn't matter, because she was with someone who cherished her and everything she stood for.
They went on like this for what seemed like hours. She danced until she couldn't dance anymore, and he played until the strings began to cut into his fingers thanks to the years he'd been out of practice. Reluctantly, he stopped, and they both flopped onto the couch. Their chests heaved as if they had been through an hour of cardio, but they both seemed to bask in the glory of what they had created together.
While they lay on the couch, Damien reached over and promptly brought her to his chest, his face buried in her hair. Eagerly, she snuggled into his strong embrace and turned her head so she could see the violin, which he had rested protectively against her back.
"I really like you," he replied, and they laughed together as she playfully hit his chest.
"Can you go more than two seconds without trying to seduce me?" She teased again, and he merely sent her a playful wink.
"Never," he purred, before his expression grew soft, and he hugged her as tightly as he could.
When she put her head upon his chest, she could hear the steady rhythm of his heart. Usually when she put her head on his chest, she could hear the moment his heart picked up speed because of how close she was. Could hear the moment it skipped a beat because of how much love it became flooded with. But it was already racing by the time she got close enough to listen.
A smile curled her lips upwards, and she bunched up the fabric of his shirt in her hands. She had caused that reaction. She had caused his heart to beat this quickly. But she didn't focus on that. No, she didn't need to. All she really focused on was the fact that he was finally happy where he was. There was no one trying to hurt him, or exploit him for some stupid political stuff she didn't understnad.
No, he was here. And he was happy.
"Hey, Damien?" She spoke up after what seemed to be hours, lifting her head so that she could gaze upon him. At his inquisitive look, she continued. "What is that song called?"
He hesitated then, and now it was his turn to blush. He averted his gaze then, fidgeting with the strings that ran along his gift.
"I wrote it," he admitted, and he winced at her confused look. "I liked writing music. I never stopped. I... I guess I just hoped one day I'd be able to play again," he laughed nervously, and she smiled.
"How long ago did you write it?"
This gave him pause, and he ducked his head, as if he meant to try and hide away so that he couldn't answer her.
"When I met you," he murmured so softly she had to strain to hear him.
Her head jerked with surprise, and she blinked up at him with a gaze filled with amazement. He smiled nervously and began to play with her hair. Gently, ever so gently, he twisted the curl over in his fingers, watching the way the light seemed to turn it to strings of the finest gold.
But she was worth more than gold. She was worth more than anything and anyone combined.
"The Story of Us," he whispered at last. At her inquisitive look, he winced. "The song. It's what I called it. The Story of Us," he seemed to wait then. Wait for her to laugh, or tell him it was stupid. What he didn't expect was for her to beam up at him like he was the best thing that had ever happened to her and lean forward to capture him in a kiss. When they parted, she cupped his cheek in her hands, gently brushing her thumb under his eye.
"Good thing this story will have a happy ending," she commented.
He nodded in agreement then, moving her back into a position to where he could hold her. He always wanted to hold her. If she was there, it meant that she was safe. That she still loved him.
So how did it end up like this?
How did it end up with her in another's arms? How did it end up with him as the bad guy?
He never wanted this. This wasn't how the story was supposed to go. The notes had started out minor. Started out sad. But the end got fixed. They got a happy ending, with each other. So why was this happening? Why did the tune fall flat? Why did the notes that were once so beautiful sound like nails on a chalkboard every time he played?
But he couldn't stop. Wouldn't. It was all he had left of her. He had burned the pictures. Burned the memories encased in pictures he'd never get back. He had almost burned the violin.
Instead, he sat quietly on his bed, his back turned to the door, and played. When his mother came in and asked him what on earth he was doing, he smiled, and through his own thick tears, replied.
I'm so sorry :') @nemiliciouss