Christine sipped her tea as she quickly finished typing a paper on her laptop. She groaned inwardly. She was not satisfied with the result, but it would have to do for now.

She flipped the computer shut and slid it into her bag.

Pulling the strap over her shoulder and simultaneously taking another long sip of her tea, Christine stood and began walking out the door of the flat.

"I'm off to work," she called to Meg.

Hearing a sound of acknowledgement from her flatmate, Christine went out and shut the door.

When she arrived at the music shop, the bell rang softly as the door opened. She saw Erik sitting in one of the chairs by the window. She smiled, remembering their conversation last time.

Erik's head turned at her entrance, angling his head to hear her better.

"Good morning, Erik," she greeted cheerfully. She noticed he was frowning and, to her dismay, the frown deepened at her salutation.

She wondered what she might have done that could upset him. She didn't think she had been rude last time they spoke.

She took her station behind the counter and took a brown paper bag from her pack. She found a small bowl on a shelf under the counter and poured the contents of the bag into it. The small chocolates and candies nestled gently into their new place.

Moving the bowl to the front of the counter, Christine began organizing things on the shelves.

As she worked, Christine noticed Erik getting up in her peripheral vision. He stood and walked to his office in the back. He hesitated at the door, as if he was considering something, before he closed the door, save for a small gap he left.

Christine continued her work and awaited any customers.

After a while, Christine became bored and pulled her laptop back out of her bag. Flipping it back open, she read over her paper again.

As she typed and edited, Christine was aware of Erik working in his office behind her. She could hear him tuning various string instruments and occasionally he would stop abruptly to tighten or loosen a string.

The bell rang and Christine quickly snapped her computer shut and looked up.

A small girl and a woman had walked in together. The older seemed to be the girl's mother, and the girl was shying behind her.

They walked up to the counter and Christine greeted them with a bright smile.

"Good morning," she chirped, "How can I help you?"

The mother gave her a somewhat apologetic and exasperated look. She tried to coax the girl out from behind her, but she was largely unsuccessful.

"My daughter is looking for something, but I have no idea what. I've been trying to get her to ask herself, but she's a bit shy."

The woman seemed a bit sheepish at this confession.

Christine gave her a soft smile and came out from behind the counter. She kneeled next to the girl and spoke softly.

"Hi," she said, "What's your name?"

The girl stepped back behind her mother so she was just peeking out at Christine.

The mother shook her head.

"Abigail," she said.

"Hey, Abigail," Christine ventured again, "do you like candy?"

The girl glanced up at her mother before nodding.

Christine plucked the candy bowl from the counter and offered it to the girl. She shook it slightly, mixing the candies around and attempting to entice the girl.

"You can have any kind you want," she offered.

The girl moved out from behind her mother a bit to retrieve a candy. She quietly unwrapped it and placed it on her tongue. She seemed afraid to make any fast movements or make any sound at all.

Christine sat with her legs crossed on the floor in front of the girl. She placed the bowl on the floor and offered the spot next to her to the girl.

Abigail hesitantly took a seat next to Christine, chewing her candy slowly.

"So," Christine began gently, "Abigail, do you play an instrument?"

The girl nodded, swallowing her candy. Her large, brown eyes studying Christine.

"I play the violin," she whispered.

Christine grinned.

"Oh, I love those. My father used to play to me and he was amazing. I loved listening to him play. What kind of music do you like to play?"

Abigail thought for a moment.

"I like classical, like Mozart," she responded, her voice growing slightly in volume.

Christine nodded.

"My father used to love that. Classical pieces are beautiful."

Abigail nodded.

Christine decided it was time to get to business. "What did you come in for today?" she asked.

Abigail glanced at her mother, turning slightly pink as if she was remembering her shyness.

"My mum doesn't know much about violins," she confessed, "I need some more rosin and a new D string."

Christine nodded.

"Okay. I think I know who you need to talk to. I don't know that much about them either and I'm new here, so we'll need some help."

Christine took Abigail's hand and led her to the door in the back of the store. She knocked lightly and the door immediately opened.

Erik was standing with a very slight smile on his face when Christine saw him.

"Hello, Erik," she said, "I'm not sure where to find what this little musician needs. I was hoping you could help. I don't know much about rosin or violin strings, so I figured you would be the best person to ask."

Erik nodded. He left his office and walked along the back wall until he reached a shelf with boxes of rosin.

Taking one in his hand, he turned to the girl.

"What kind of violin do you have? Is it light colored, or dark colored?"

Abigail began describing her violin and Erik listened in silence. He ran his hand along different boxes and finally plucked one from the shelf. He held it out sharply, stating the qualities of the specific rosin he was suggesting and telling them why this was the one she needed.

As Abigail's mother cautiously stepped forward to take the box from him, Erik pulled something from one of his pockets, offering it to her as well.

"And this is the string you need," he stated, "I assume the girl knows how to replace a string?"

The girl shrank back and shakily nodded.

Christine was stunned at this interaction. She had not expected Erik to act this way, but she had never seen him interact with customers before. She felt guilty for setting him on them like this and she could see the progress she had made with the girl becoming ineffective the more he spoke.

"Erik," Christine said, "I need to talk to you."

She snatched the sleeve of his blazer and half dragged him to his own office.

When he stopped looking slightly stunned, Erik straightened up and waited for her to begin speaking.

"Erik. What in the world are you doing?" she asked incredulously, "This girl is extremely shy and you're making her scared. She isn't ever going to want to talk again. I had to coax her out of her own shell and now all that work is ruined. Do you have the ability to be tactful?"

Erik was once again stunned.

"Uh, um, I-I," he stammered. He felt his face heat up as he struggled to articulate his thoughts.

Christine sighed.

"Erik, from now on, I am going to need you to train me on where things are here and what's best for the instruments because you absolutely cannot deal with the younger customers. Please let me take care of the rest of this one."

Christine didn't wait for him to respond. She marched back to the two customers and began chatting with them. She tried to get the girl to open up again, but Erik could tell she was having little luck.

He felt ashamed that he had been so rude. He had known the situation and he had still kept his formal attitude with the girl. He had been recklessly insensitive and, to make it worse, he had done it in front of Christine.

He stopped himself at the last thought.

Oh goodness. Now you're letting her decide how you act? You still don't even know her.

Erik went back into his office, shutting the door fully behind him this time. He was going to shut the world out for a bit to clear his head.

Picking up his own violin, Erik began playing the first song that came to his mind.

Possibly because he had overheard the girl earlier, the tune happened to be one of Mozart's.

He allowed his body to move with the sound, slowly swaying with the melody.

Christine saw the girl visibly perk up upon hearing the music. She turned slightly towards the source.

Christine smiled.

"Abigail, I think that's Erik's way of saying he's sorry," she said, "He's not very good with words, but he understands music."

Abigail turned back to Christine with a look in her eye that showed her deep admiration for the musician who could produce such a sound. Christine could tell from that moment on that the girl was going to work with all her might so she would be able to play the violin that well.

After the transaction was complete and the girl was on her way with her mother, Christine felt a bit ashamed she had spoken to Erik in such a way.

She walked quietly to the back of the store and approached the door to his office.

As she did this, the tune of the music changed and began playing a song she was much more familiar with. Her father had played this song to her many times and it was one of her favorites to sing.

How does he always seem to know what to play? She wondered. She could not bring herself to knock and interrupt the song, but she leaned against the wall next to the door and began quietly singing along with it.

Initially, Erik did not seem to notice, but when her voice grew in volume, she heard a slight faltering in the notes. He didn't play it incorrectly, but there was a wavering for a moment as if he was unsure of what to do.

As the music continued, Christine sang. She filled the store with the music and she felt something stir in her chest that she had not felt for years. She was genuinely enjoying singing in this moment, she realized. For so long, she had made singing a chore so she no longer wished for it.

In that moment, everything was perfect. The violin and Christine were in perfect harmony with each other and time seemed to stop.