They're Playing Our Song

My Impressive Bassoon

"Honey, I'm hoooome," Leo's voice boomed as he walked in to Nora's apartment, her notebook and super precious pen in one hand and Nora's spare keys in the other. He was cradling two milk teas from their local milk tea spot in his arms—Nora preferred a really plain milk tea with barely any sugar, and he enjoyed the passionfruit tea with those things that looked like boba, but popped the instant you tried to bite it. He loved that stuff.

The milk tea was part of their routine as well. Nora had a horrible sweet tooth, and was always looking for something sweet after dinner. This came to Leo's advantage, because his sweet tooth was even worse.

"Did you take off your shoes?" Nora asked from where she was sitting at the head of her dining table, wearing the boxers he saw on her the night they met, and a CLSM shirt that had panels on both sides added in to make sure it fit her. The neck of the shirt was cut out, but it was so old and ratty that it had stretched out, exposing one of her shoulders.

"Shit, sorry, I forgot," Leo quickly backtracked and carefully toed off his shoes, leaving it next to hers on a rack by the door. "Sorry. I didn't actually think you were back yet."

"It's fine. Did you just call me honey?" Nora didn't look up. She was furiously typing something on her computer, and it she had that same intensity on her face as she did most things—playing piano, making love.

He couldn't help it. He chuckled.

"We're calling each other that now?" She asked, looking up at him, shooting him a wry look. He grinned and walked over to where she was sitting, and knelt beside her and looked up. Nora looked a little tired but happy, and she kissed him in greeting. He held up her milk tea.

"Eh, I'm not sold on it. Nightcap?"

"Thanks," she smiled, taking the precious drink and tearing off the plastic top. An unusual way to drink it, but she didn't use straws. "How was your dinner with Celie?"

"Oh, she abandoned me for someone who can afford Blackbird," he chuckled, taking the seat next to her, resting his elbow on the table, his chin in his hand as he watched her continue to work. "I ate fried chicken from the convenience store near my hotel."

"You went back to your hotel?" She asked.

"Just for a little bit. I checked my messages, picked up underwear, that kind of thing," he shrugged, putting his backpack on the ground where he always did. They exchanged smiles, a weird sort of understanding between them that things were good. "How was the gym?"

"Enlightening," she said, closing her laptop to properly engage in conversation with him. He was surprised when, instead of elaborating, she asked him something else instead. "How was rehearsal with Celie?"

"Phenomenal," he said quickly, and he'd been chewing on that word the whole day now. It had been on the tip of his tongue, going around in his head the moment Celie took the piano and blew the whole room away with her mastery of the instrument, her light touch and her serene smile.

She and Nora played very differently, he realized. Where Nora looked at the piano as something to overcome and conquer, Celie soothed the instrument and treated it like an old friend that never did her any wrong. "She's amazing, the kids are amazing, the kundiman is beautiful. We still have a lot of work to do, but I really think the orchestra is going to kill it at the concert next month."

"That's great," Nora said, and the breathlessness in her voice told him that she really meant it. "I'm actually really excited for this."

"Well, considering you browbeat me into choosing your favorite pieces..."