SaHil TS - The Keyboard Guy Part 1

OS - The Keyboard Guy

Present

I closed my eyes, relaxing against the head rest, as I listened to his new composition. Goshness! He is so awesome with the piano! A true pianist already made, not in making!

He always said a piano responds to you like no other. When your fingers press the keys of the instrument, it reacts to the feeling. A piano has feelings, like your touch, that can never be enunciated by a keyboard. He loved his piano, and it is almost two decades old! Still strong and melodious and powerful as ever!

Music has the power to reach the soul, like words. There is music in the flames of the fire, there is music in the falling drops of the rain, there is music in the swaying of branches on trees, there is music in the air. Music is everywhere.

I just drifted away to some faraway land, as the music floated through the air. So melodious, so serene, so soothing. He has always had a way with his fingers.

My thoughts drifted to when I met him two years ago, I encountered him rather...

Flashback 2 years ago

I had just moved into a new apartment and I saw a guy, in late twenties - early thirties walking in to one of the flats, one of the residents perhaps. But, I had a stinging feeling I had seen him before, but couldn't place him. The whole of the day and the next, I broke my head on who he could possibly be. I met him again in the lift, and, I said, "Is that you, Aahil?" He looked at me and said, "Ya... And you are?" I laughed, laughed and laughed. By then, we had reached the ground floor. "Are you sure you can't recognize me?" I teased. I was so going to enjoy this!

He looked so lost, and yet so cute, I didn't remember the smile from so many years. He had changed. He'd grown older, less boyish, and more mature.

"You don't! You don't recognize me? Oh. My. God. Seher's going to be so wild with rage, she'll paste you!" I said. His brows wrinkled in confusion when, a moment later, he smiled a knowing smile and all excited, "Sanam?" I laughed in agreement. "How are you? It's been so long!"

Yes, it had. "I am awesome actually. How are you doing? Cosmic coincidence, meeting you here." I said. "More, like cosmic catastrophe, if Seher's here too." He joked, while I playfully slapped his arm. "Okay, gotta get going now. I'll catch up with you later?" We bid goodbye to each other, and headed our own way.

Soon, we met up more often. He stayed just a floor above me. I learnt he was a musician. That was great, since he had always been a musical guy. He was just AMAZING at the piano, and the guitar. He could manage drums too. He sucked at violin, wasn't his cup of tea then, not now. Seher was delighted too. After like ten years we were meeting him? We were in school when we last saw him, time had flown so fast, we never realised. We grew closer, and I think I probably like him? I can't believe myself. Who knew, after so many years, I would fall for him? It seemed very implausible to myself, ten years ago, I wouldn't have believed it myself...

Flashback 12 years ago

"Thank you for coming so early." I said sarcastically, smiling as sweet as can be, opening the door and letting him in. "Hey, I am just a few minutes late." Aahil said in defence.

Rather, Aahil Sir. Well, he is technically just around five to six years older to me, Sir, sounds weird. Only Aahil' sounds disrespectful. So, I don't technically CALL him anything. "Ya sure, few for you is more than quarter an hour isn't it? Come in." I said, letting him in, laughing. He'd never change. He hasn't in like the three years I had known him.

"Who was playing Thousand Years?" He asked. Well, I was until he rang the bell, and I opened the door. "I was playing."

"Why'd you stop? I was listening from outside. Sounded good. I was waiting for the chorus but it stopped." He said. Wow. Aahil appreciating me is a one-time feat! It is always a, Ya, it's fine, but, finger numbers are wrong or you pressed the wrong key or it is too fast or something or the other.'

"Who's going first?" He asked. "Well, Seher, I think." I said, just when my identical twin entered. "Hey, Seher! Wassup!" He gave her a five. Trust him to do that.

I went in to my bedroom for Seher to come and call me, once she finished.

Keyboard guy is here.

I WhatsApped Sanjana. He was the keyboard guy' to my friends.

I had a story to write, which I could do in the thirty minutes I had before my turn came in. Aahil is our keyboard tutor. We learn privately, haven't given any exams yet. Well, before, I continue. I am Sanam Farooqui Khan, daughter of Asad Ahmed Khan and Zoya Farooqui, in alphabetical order, F first, then K, while A precedes Z. Mom and Dad are living examples of gender equality and even practice by giving equal importance to our Mom's name too. Well, that's why, both of us, Seher and myself, are the Farooqui-Khan sisters instead of Ahmed Khan sisters that would be more normal.

As I was halfway through, I heard the scraping of a chair and knew Seher was done, I waited for the official confirmation; "Go." She said. Seher was done. "I finished Hall of Fame. Finally. I hate it now." I just laughed, trust Seher to want to play an eight page piece and want to quit after two pages, and then, be forced to finish it because Aahil wants us to finish whatever we start and groan and grumble till it ends. I, on the other hand, have learnt the hard way, that, try only those that you like, and that are compact.

I'd finished A Thousand Years by Christina Perri. It is one of the best I have ever played, and it isn't pretty difficult, on a scale of10, it would probably be 3. But, it sounds epic! I mean, as brilliant as brilliant itself! The best part was, it was the first time, I had actually completed a single piece, a fact, Seher never forgot to taunt me about and I did it on my own, without his help.

"Hi again" I said, as I took a seat beside Aahil at the keyboard. "So, you are doing Thousand Years..."

"I finished Thousand Years!!!" I announced, "And by myself, that too." I added, feeling immensely proud of myself. I had finished three pages in like one week. Usually, it is one page per week and mainly why, Seher was sick of her piece, two months and the same piece! And, I had finished like three to four pieces by then. I lolled internally. "Can I play?"

"Ya, go ahead" Aahil said his attention on his phone. That's the fun thing about him. He teaches us without the typical stigma associated with teachers. He was seriously a lot of fun!

He was so cool, my friend once, got freaked out! I was narrating this incident to my friend about how Aahil jovially described a symbol in music as "L and 7 making love" (Well, it did look like that, in his defence.) She thought it was super weird, and my tutor was all weird, when I mentioned that, he was like twenty and she relaxed. She assumed him to be a fourty year old, potbellied, grumbling man, not a well maintained, well-toned guy of twenty.

I began playing making sure I don't make unnecessary pauses, the sharps and flats are the right ones, and I don't press other notes with the right ones, the effect is very jarring.

"Wow. That sounded awesome." He said, genuinely appreciative. And I mentally, did a happy dance. As I said earlier, it isn't always that I get praised by him. Neither does Seher. Both of us get belted and praised equally. His belting would be, "Beh, it sounds horrible. Terrible. Terrible." With exaggerated hand and facial gestures, that I'd just end up laughing. Or probably, "It was a huge exercise to my ears." And I would probably counter with, a "Hey, so mean. Be nicer."

"Which cable operator is yours?" He asked pointing to the TV. "Ahm, the local one actually, we have a set top box from the local cable guy. Which one do you have?"

"Hathway is good..."

"Oh, you have Hathway?" I asked, I have been wanting a dish at our own home, Mom, Dad feel it is unnecessary since it would mean more distractions, clearly avoidable in Class 12.

"Nope. I have TATA Sky, I should have got Hathway. It is cheaper and has a better package."

...

"Tumhare ishq se bani hoon main.. pehle zinda thi.. ab jee rahi hoon main."

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A/N - Posted this as the contest OS. Turned it into a TS now.. Buddy me for PMs. And ya.

The Natural Symbol in music goes like this -