Skip Navigation
Exquisite Corpse
|
Post by Deleted on Jun 13, 2008 23:56:00 GMT -5
Haunting. That’s how someone described his playing. Haunting and heartbreaking and beautiful. A broken china voice, vibrating out of the grand piano and bouncing off the walls, filling the crevices with glorious sounds rich and deep, angry and sad. Tobias pounded the keys with long fingers. An ashtray sat on top of the baby grand, over flowing with ash and yellow butts. The smoke caught in the amber light and circled around him, glowing and iridescently tragic. The ivory keys were littered with small coloured chocolate candies and they bounced and danced with each beat. He paused, ate a few, slid the rest away…not really knowing or caring as to how or why they had spilled onto the keys. Playing was the one thing that gave him a since of peace, a since of belonging and of wholeness. When he played, it looked as though he were barely touching the piano. Only just kissing the keys with his fingers. This is where Tobias belonged. {Ooc: I was thinking of the 2nd one down on the list when I wrote this , to give you all an idea. search.playlist.com/tracks/pianist the halo theme.}
|
|
|
Post by Tempest on Jun 14, 2008 0:21:43 GMT -5
Caroline was minding her own business, taking some papers to be photocopied in the library when she thought she heard music.
Curious, she followed the sound through a set of double doors nearby. It was a very strong tune, passionate and heartbreakingly well-played. Her eyes had to get used to the morose lighting and color of the auditorium before she realized who was sitting at the piano.
She didn't need to get any closer than a few rows from the back- her gift would help carry the sound if she couldn't hear it. Besides, she didn't want to disturb Tobias in his art.
Caroline had never seen this side of her ex before- not even when they had been going out. If you could call it going out. As far as she could recall, they had begun fighting soon after they met and then everything was interrupted. Tobias went soul-searching and she contended with matters of a more sinister nature. Hell, even the visit from Raze was enough to mar a part of it.
Caroline's impression of Tobias had always been (barring perhaps two or three exceptions) of a man not quite comfortable in his own skin. He gave off erratic vibes that fluctuated so quickly between jagged and smooth that it was hard to tell how he really was. What did he want people to see? The smooth-talking, very sensual irishman who knew his vices and accepted them? Or the half-wolf who knew his faults and couldn't find a proper balance between what felt good and what was right, yet whose power was seductive enough to be temptation itself.
Caroline closed her eyes for the rest of the song and tried to ignore such thoughts. It was clear to her that this might very well be the only place that Tobias felt completely happy, so she wouldn't impede.
A smile curved her lips upwards. Caroline herself could sing, but she usually only did it out of the blue when she was happy and away from other people. Still, she carried an appreciation for music around in her heart, an appreciation that might have even been augmented by her unique sound-bending talents.
|
|
|
Post by Deleted on Jun 14, 2008 14:45:42 GMT -5
A sour note threw him off course and he pulled to a dead stop then just stared at the key. He hit it once, then once more, and then he couldn’t stop tapping it. Mesmerized by the cracked sound, and angered by it.
Tobias stood, pulled back the casing to reveal the river of metal strings and continued to tap it, watching the mallet smack coldly against the string. His ashtray had fallen to the floor, sending flurries everywhere.
To the human ear, the note being off was hardly noticeable, but for Tobias, the imperfectness consumed him. He had to correct it, otherwise nothing would feel right with him. After tinkering with the piano a while longer, Tobias stopped, raised his head like an animal that could sense something watching it. He sniffed the air, tilting his head so that his ear could catch the sound of her breathing. A wolfish grin played on the corners of his lips. “ ‘Ello, Caroline.”
|
|
|
Post by Tempest on Jun 14, 2008 15:03:33 GMT -5
Caroline had been watching all of this with an amused curiosity. After he'd tapped the key a few times, she'd figured it out. It must be off, if but slightly.
As he'd been tinkering with the piano, she had looked over the pages she needed to photocopy. They were handouts for her first few lessons. This year, she wanted to take a new direction in her teaching. She would incorporate lyrics and plays into her lessons and have more hands-on discussion and assignments.
She looked up when the noise stopped and smiled. "Hello, Tobias." She straightened the papers out and said wryly, "I hope you didn't mind an audience."
Caroline stood and approached the stage so that she could get a better look at the pianist. "You play beautifully, by the way. How come you never mentioned this before?"
|
|
|
Post by Deleted on Jun 14, 2008 15:15:26 GMT -5
Tobias shrugged and shoved his hands into his pockets. “Just never really thought about it. Sort of just something I do for myself, by myself.” He lit another cigarette and peered out into the house, but the lights were down so he could only guess at the area she was standing in. “I can’t really see you in the dark, you know…bad eyes,” he laughed a little. “Dog eyes.”
Smoke curled out of his nostrils, his nose ring glinted in the soft amber light. “Do you uh… do you remember reading my journal? The one I took when I left to find myself?” He paused, thinking of how ridiculous he must sound. He glanced at her shadowy silhouette with his feral eyes. There wasn’t a day now that they weren’t a less than human, a daunting realization that frightened him.
“Well there was this one woman I had met…she couldn’t say your name, right? So she just called you my song.” He rubbed the back of his neck and retrieved his ashtray, bending over he felt the waistband cutting into his hipbones. They were a little snugger than they had been.
He flicked the ashes and sighed. “I dunno, I was just thinking about it is all.” He laughed then. “Remember how big I got in such a short amount of time…I guess good things never stick around for long do they?”
|
|
|
Post by Tempest on Jun 14, 2008 15:24:09 GMT -5
Caroline smiled and approached the stage. She sighed at the mention of Tobias and his journal and replied, "I think I do remember that. But things were going by so quickly then... You looked good back then, Tobias. Healthy."
She shrugged. "Good things are usually those you have to work for. You have to keep up good habits if you wish to keep up their effects."
At the moment, she was calmer than she had been in a long time, albeit taking more of an interest in Tobias than she should be if they were just friends. She admonished herself silently and added, "Did you fix the problem with that key?"
She found herself studying his eyes, which were very striking in this kind of light.
|
|
|
Post by Deleted on Jun 15, 2008 10:24:46 GMT -5
Tobias offered her a shadow of a smile. “Sometimes…I don’t know, I get so discouraged.” He watched her silently while she spoke. The way her hair shone dully in the light, the way her mouth curved and formed the words. He thought, when they had been dating, if he could really call it that, she would have fixed all his problems.
He had cheated on her, and done so many things wrong by her. Although he was sorely disappointed that she just wanted to be friends, he couldn’t blame her.
Tobias stamped out the cigarette butt and moved to the piano, whipping his big hand against the sides of his jeans. “Lets find out then shall we?” He played the bridge of a familiar sonata, then punched out an interesting version of The Beatles ‘Happiness is a warm gun’ and nodded approvingly. He had half sung, half muttered the lyrics and turned to her with the shadow of a smile. “At least I can do something right, eh?”
|
|
|
Post by Tempest on Jun 15, 2008 11:11:06 GMT -5
Caroline sighed a little at the discouraged bit. She wanted to... well, help him through the hard places, but she didn't know how she'd go about it other than offer to listen and be there if he needed her. Unlikely for him to want for either, though, she told herself.
She listened to him testing the piano and held back the urge to join him in singing, to strengthen his voice with hers.
But it was over all too quickly and she returned his semismile with one of her own. However, his comment made her give him a stern look. "You judge yourself too harshly, Tobias."
|
|
|
Post by Deleted on Jun 15, 2008 20:31:06 GMT -5
Tobias smirked. “Perhaps, but it’s all I’ve got to work with.” He stood and stretched his back until it popped. Then he adjusted his shirt tales. Awkward silences were the worst. He cleared his throat. “You going to copy some papers?” Tobias asked stupidly, trying to fill the black hole of silence they were diving into. “I’m going to quit again you know…” he added, meaning the cigarettes, but not sure it came across that way. Maybe she knew what he meant, and maybe she just felt like he was trying to impress her or something just a ridiculous. He might as well add, while he was spiraling down the verbal turmoil “Did you know I’m at high-risk for a heart attack despite my age?” but he said nothing, only looked away from her and cleared his throat again.
|
|
|
Post by Tempest on Jun 15, 2008 21:05:24 GMT -5
"Yes." Caroline was torn between wanting to laugh at Tobias's peculiar segues and wanting to cry at how hard he was trying to fill the silence. She let him off the hook and said nothing about the quitting (she could guess what he was referring to and had her doubts about whether he could quit and stay off of them).
Nor did she laugh or cry. Either might have warranted explanation. Oftentimes an explanation led to a disagreement. That, in turn, would lead to an argument. The last thing she wanted at the moment was an argument.
"Can you play Piano Man?" she asked, climbing onto the stage and standing by the baby grand. At the moment, she wore a hesitant half-smile on her lips. "I mean... well, I'm sure you're familiar with it... Yes?"
She wasn't sure she wanted to do this, but then, it was a lot better than talking at the moment.
|
|
|
Post by Deleted on Jun 15, 2008 21:19:25 GMT -5
Tobias nodded as he searched her face. He sat down and cracked his knuckles, the stench of his cigarettes filled his nostrils and his lungs pined for a stick but he brushed the thought away. He hit a few keys, just to get his head in the right place. “I haven’t in a while, so I won’t be able to sing it.”
Tobias could sing quite well, not the best in the bunch, but his natural charisma helped give him a natural edge, in the same since that someone would think Tom Waits sang beautifully or think that Bob Dylan didn’t whine out notes. Tobias had a smoky jazz voice, but rarely even sang in the shower, and like most people, his accent couldn’t be traced.
He had never had an audience for his singing, so he didn’t want to be judged in front of her. Tobias knew that Caroline liked to sing, but he couldn’t remember actually ever hearing her. “Okay,” he said to himself, placing his fingers at the home base. Would she sing now that they were alone? Or would she just listen? He didn’t mind either way.
Tobias closed his eyes and played the harmonica bit in his head the stroked they keys, and once the son picked up at the first bridge, was wrapped up by the melody and lost himself in the world of Piano Man. Being a closet pianist was one of the best things in the world. He wasn’t always bothered by the requests that people would shoot at him in they knew he could play. And because hardly anyone knew his secret passion, he could freely have an out of body experience that came with music.
|
|
|
Post by Tempest on Jun 15, 2008 21:49:02 GMT -5
Caroline's smile broadened when Tobias sat down to play. She was nervous about singing, but she let herself hum the very end of the harmonica part to steel her nerves. It was either all or nothing. Starting, then stopping because she was too worried to go on would only make things even more awkward.
So when the song began, she started. It was a little quiet, but it fit right in with the low-key mood of the very beginning of the song. By the time they reached the chorus, she was going very strong. She had to sing this song a bit higher than Billy Joel sang it... and there were parts she changed to better fit her voice.
"...yes they're sharing a drink they call loneliness, but it's better than drinking alone."
There was a break there where she could listen to Tobias play and she did so with a delighted grin. It wasn't so bad, now that she'd gotten this far.
|
|
|
Post by Deleted on Jun 15, 2008 22:27:06 GMT -5
Tobias’ inner ear fine-tuned to Caroline’s voice and shifted to hit the higher keys. Once the song ended, he lingered in an improved melody winding down his senses to the existing plane of reality, slowly pulling away from the music’s euphoric sensation. It was really true what they say about music calming the savage beast. Once he removed his hands, however, he felt split in half once more.
He sighed, turned to her and smiled. A real genuine honest smile. The look he gave her was an innocent look that one would witness on a couple that were not dating but had a strong, beyond physical, attraction to each other. The type of look could be seen on blushing virgins and young men who were captivated by the women that they unknowingly fell for. The kind that had the eyes locking for a split second, before being cast away, with pink brushed in the cheeks and a flutter in the hearts and stomachs.
“You sing beautifully.”
|
|
|
Post by Tempest on Jun 15, 2008 22:55:10 GMT -5
Caroline was almost saddened by the end of the song. It was like the end of a very good book... the fact that you finished it exhausts you, but you hunger for more and you know that if you try to read it again so soon after the first time it will lose its flair and seductiveness.
She found herself staring back at Tobias with an expression that was a suble mix between euphoria and giddyness until he averted his gaze. Then she realized that she was encouraging forbidden feelings and redness rose to her cheekbones.
For a moment there, she'd seen him as he had been a while before... healthy and happy and whole... but that was all over before she could register it, name it...
"Y-you really think so? Thank you!" Truth be told, she was very flattered. She allowed herself polite smile and added, "And thank you again, for indulging me. It was a pleasure to sing with such a talented pianist."
Feeling the sense of awkwardness come back, she straightened her papers and turned towards the auditorium's seats, debating with herself. Perhaps she should leave and let Tobias play in peace...
|
|
|
Post by Deleted on Jun 15, 2008 23:15:51 GMT -5
Tobias let out an embarrassed laugh. “Thanks,” he mumbled. He was embarrassed by how he was acting around Caroline, like a boy who didn’t know anything about the chemistry of man. Around her, he lost his carefully cultivated charisma. One of his mates from college had said that no matter how Tobias looked physically or how much of a jerk he could be, there was no denying that Tobias was a professional charmer. He, Tobias, had always just assumed that his mate was making an accurate analogy. But it was all lost on Caroline.
Suddenly, a pulsing headache rammed at his temples. He winced and shook his head, clenching his teeth. He didn’t think it would be possible, but his duality had gotten much worse since Caroline had last seen him. There was a bad moon on the rise and he could feel his conscious mind split in perfect halves. A thick stream of blood trickled out of his nose, and he had tried to stand, but the light-headedness had kicked him off his feet. If he was healthier, stronger, would he be able to control the wolf in him or would it just give the beast a proper advantage.
|
|
|