All these people, everything about them, I can hear it.
The music, it tells me all I need to know. The details, they play their songs for me.
Can't you hear it? The music of these people plays out all around them, lauding their very essence for the world to hear.
All you have to do is observe. All you have to do, is listen.
"William Scott! William!" Jim cried.
"What's wrong, Jim?" William said, not turning his head to look at his friend.
"Carl is looking for you." Jim panted, a bit out of breath from running all the way through the field. William preferred secluded areas, and he often was in a little copse far from the orphanage.
William sighed and looked away. "What do you expect me to do about that? Please, just go Jim. I'll be back to the house soon."
Jim shook his head and left without a word. He was used to William's strange moods after knowing him for so long.
Sometimes the notes ring out harsh and discordant. It's overwhelming, the sadness and the anger that rings out in this music.
I can't understand what these songs say. They're blurred, a beautiful melody that can't be analyzed. I feel like if I could understand the notes, if I knew what the music was screaming at me, maybe it would tell me how to find them.
He lay in his bed, listening to the gentle snores of the boys around him. William could hear footsteps heading towards his bed, and he knew it was Carl and his friends. Curling himself tighter into a ball, as if he could somehow block them out, he waited for Carl to talk.
"Well hello there, freak." he snarled, his group laughing and crowding around William's bunk. "Still hearing people's music? Do you hear the music of your long lost parents?"
"Yes." William said, sitting up and staring at Carl and his friends.
"No you can't. Carl insisted, the grin dropping from his face.
"Yes, I can. The music says they want me, I know it."
"You can't hear anything! You don't have a family." Carl growled, shoving William back.
"Why are you so upset? Is it because you've given up on your family? Or is it because deep down, you still hope that they'll find you?" William said. The music carried the same sadness for all the boys, a constant ringing of hope and resentment in his ears.
"What was that, you freak!" Carl shouted, face contorted as he shoved into William again, this time hitting him hard against the wall.
"Boys! Get back in your beds this instant!"
Carl scoffed, whispering "Saved by the old lady, William. Don't count on it happening next time." before pulling away.
Mrs. Turner stood firmly in the entranceway, waiting until everyone was in bed before she left.
Most of the times I don't understand what the music is saying. But I believe in the music. I like to think that it sings to me the music of my parents, and it reassures me that someday, I will find them.
Maybe they're searching for me, using the music as a guide. Maybe the music led them to each other in the first place. Maybe they can decipher these constant melodies where I cannot.
0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o
"Sit up straight now."
Violet took a deep breath before standing up and facing her father.
"See? You look fine, now go out there and blow all of their minds." her father said, smiling a rare smile.
"Thank you Dad." she said, reaching out to hug him.
"Whoa, no." he said, stepping back. "You can't go out on stage with your hair and makeup messed up. Now go on, they're waiting for you."
Violet picked up her cello and bow, moving towards the bright lights of the stage. When a backstage assistant waved her on, she stepped carefully onto the stage, blinking at the blinding light. The glow caught on her hair and made it flash, lighting up her whole face. This was where she belonged.
As the conductor tapped his baton, she raised the bow to the strings and waited. When he lowered the stick and she drew the first note from her instrument, she lost herself to the music.
0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0
"Siger, come on! We're going on!"
Siger took one last look in the mirror, taking a long breath before turning away.
"Yeah, I'm coming!" he called back.
"Oi, no shouting! You're our lead, what if your voice suddenly crapped out on stage? From now on, you can only whisper." Jeremy yelled.
"Oh yeah? You're yelling aren't ya?" Siger laughed, opening the door.
"I'm just the drum guy, my voice can be bollocks and no one would even notice! Now come on, this gig is huge! This is gonna make us Siger, I swear. Imagine our names up in the bright lights!" Jeremy said almost reverently, faraway look in his eyes.
"Alright, now come along you berk." Siger said, knocking him on the back of his head before climbing the stairs to the stage.
Hearing the cheers of the crowd as the other band members rushed onto the stage, he waited for his cue. As the music started and he took his first step into the lights amid the screaming of the throng, he couldn't remember ever feeling so alive.
0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0
"You just finished a big concert, we should celebrate. Christ Violet, when's the last time you just relaxed? We are so going to this party tonight, it'll be tons of fun!" Shirley exclaimed, giving a new address to the cabbie.
"Shirley, I just don't do parties! I'm just not that kind of person." Violet protested.
"Well, you'd better become 'that kind of person', cause we're nearly there." Shirley giggled.
"I won't know what to do there, I'll be bored out of my mind. Plus, my dad will honest to god freak out." Violet sighed, knowing there was no use now that Shirley was determined.
0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0
"We're out mates, catch you in the morning!" Jeremy sang as he slung his arm around Siger's shoulders.
"Oi, where are we going?" Siger said as Jeremy pulled him away.
"One of our groupies has invited us to a party, and we're going!"
"We don't have groupies you git. And you know I don't do big parties!"
"Come on man, this is our first after concert party! You have to come!" Jeremy insisted.
"Fine, but just this once, and in return you'd better play quality music in the car! I'm tired of listening to your shite." he sighed as he let himself be pulled away.
0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0
Looking around at the throng of people crowding around her, Violet felt like she was suffocating. Everyone was moving and pressing against her, and she just needed to get out. She found the stairs and climbed them two at a time, stopping once she got to a door. Opening it and peering out, she found herself on the roof.
She could see the city at her feet. The bright lights, the people, they all seemed so small from where she stood. Violet could hear a song on a harmonica drifting up from the streets below her, and she closed her eyes to savor it.
0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0
Siger pushed his way past all of the people surrounding him, ignoring the appreciative looks and the accidental brushes of people's hands. He found the stairs and quickly made his way up them, needing fresh air.
He pushed the door to the roof open and saw a beautiful girl standing there, silhouetted by the yellow light of the city and the pale blue light of the moon. A melody weaved through the air from the streets below.
"It's a beautiful song, isn't it?" Siger said, startling her.
She opened her eyes, looking at him with a smile. "Yeah, it is."
"You looked pretty deep in thought. What were you thinking about?" Siger said, taking a few steps towards her.
"Just... listening."
"And what do you hear?"
"A cry for something more. Disappointment at life, and a desperate craving for something more." she said, and then huffed. "I probably sound completely loony, don't I?"
"Not at all." Siger said, smiling. "My name's Siger. What's yours?"
"Violet. Sorry, I'm a bit strange about music." Violet said, smiling at him before turning her gaze back to the source of the music, one lone man on the street.
"Do you always feel that way about music?"
"Yeah, I suppose." she lilted. "Music carries so much emotion, so much more than we could possibly say with spoken words. It's hard to explain."
"I understand it." Siger said, moving to stand beside her.
"You do?" she said, looking at him with bright eyes.
"Yeah, I think I do."
"Then tell me, what is the music saying to you now?"
"It's singing of you." Siger said, meaning every word. The notes on the wind sounded her name, something so strangely beautiful.
"So why are you up here then, Siger?"
"I don't know, I guess I'm just trying to get away. And now I'm here, with you."
Violet let out a breath of laughter as she leaned in, smile making her face glow. Siger closed his eyes as their lips met. It was a strange perfection, something that he never knew that he needed, that something more.
0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0
The door opened with a loud bang and Jim stormed out. William hopped up from his seat and stopped him.
"Jim, what happened in there?"
"It's a new guy, and he's a real bastard." Jim fumed.
"Why, what'd he do?"
"He kept on making up all these lies about me! I don't know what was wrong with him, he was crazy!"
"Well what did he say?" William implored, interested.
"He just said stuff about my parents, and how... Ugh, nevermind. You'll see." Jim seethed as he stormed off, fists clenched at his sides.
William approached the door slowly, rather intrigued. He stepped into the cramped office, looking at the somehow orderly stacks of books and papers surrounding the mahogany desk. The man sitting at the desk had an impeccable 3 piece suit on and a stiff expression. Deep notes rang through the air that sounded of power; this man seemed too important to be a social worker.
"Come on in, what's your name boy?" he said, his posh voice smoothing over each syllable.
"William Scott." he replied curtly, a bit annoyed by the man. The man ran a quick glance over William as he sat in the plush seat.
"Hmm, been in this house since the beginning, ostracized by the other boys, and still holding out for your real parents to come find you." the man said dismissively, turning his eyes back to the folder in his hand.
William was struck speechless, mouth slack with shock.
"How did you do that?" he demanded after a few seconds, leaning closer towards the slightly heavyset man.
"You mean tell those things about you?" the man inquired, seeming as if he was actually seeing William for the first time.
"Yeah, how did you do it?"
"I deduced it. I just noticed the tiny details about you, and connected them to form a story. Anyone could do it really, they just don't bother to look further than what they first see." he said, a hint of of a smile stretching the corners of his mouth.
William's eyes widened at this, and he looked carefully at the man, trying to notice these details. He could still hear the music, telling him something he couldn't quite reach, just vague impressions ringing in the notes. The details were clear to his eyes, but he didn't quite understand how to connect them.
"My name is Mycroft Holmes." the man said, cutting through William's concentration. "Now tell me William, why don't you want to be adopted?"
"Because my real parents are out there, and someday they'll find me."
"A lot of children think like this, and it's perfectly understandable. But you are aware that there are so many orphans, and the likelihood of finding one child is very low. Also, although I'm sure you're not willing to hear this, but I'm sure your parents had reasons for letting you go."
"No." William whispered, shaking his head and trying not to cry. His clenched fists trembled as he took a deep breath before continuing, "No. I know they want me, I know it!"
"Okay." Mycroft Holmes sighed, pulling his wallet from his suit jacket. "Listen, I wouldn't normally do this, but call me whenever you need to. This is my card, and my personal number is on here."
William took the glossy card from his hand, running his fingers over the embossed lettering.
"Run along now." Mycroft Holmes said, continuing to review William's file as William left the office, still thinking about deducing, and it connected to the strange melodies carried by the wind.