Musical Terminology:

         • Legato - is an articulation that often refers to notes played with a full bow, and played with the shortest silence, often barely perceptible, between notes. In music performance and notation, legato indicates that musical notes are played or sung smoothly and connected.

         • Ricochet - a bowing term, using down bow and staccato to create a bouncing sound.

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         "I love you."

         The lone person smiled, standing on top of a hill as the wind blew, making the grass and flowers sway, dancing to its rythm. He sucked in a breath, then laughed, eyes falling to the stone in front of him, the single name carved on it staring back at his hollow, empty eyes.

         "I should've told you, huh?" His smile dropped, and he looked at the ground beneath his feet. His right hand clenched his left sleeve, something that he would always do to restrain the urge to drop his cool persona and just break down, wail to the heavens and curse the hellish crap he's been forced to endure which is life. With a sigh, he closed his eyes to prevent his tears from escaping and falling, before giving a small, sad smile to the stone.

Aubrey Lorraine S. Lindley

January 7, 1995 - February 14, 2020

          "Aubrey..." Lucas muttered, sitting down beside the grave. "I don't know if you've been watching from the clouds..." He forced a smile. "...but I'm a successful soloist now. It's amazing, being recognized by the world."

          A gust of wind made his bangs sway, and he closed his eyes. "But..nothing beats the world tours we held when-" He stopped himself, continuing the remaining words in his head. '-when you're still here.'

          A dry chuckle escaped his lips. He wrapped his arms around his violin case, and he leaned on the stone, a solemn expression painted on his face. 'Just this once.' he thought, 'Let me foolishly think you're here-' He sighed. '-beside me.'

          "I mean, we're the duo Twice World Plays," he said in a forced cheery tone, "We can't be called a duo if we're not complete. It's just...wrong." Lucas then dropped his smile. His hazel eyes stared at the trees surrounding the graveyard as he continued, "I'm just sorry, you know? Sorry because I made you suffer. Sorry because I was a coward who's afraid to stay true to his feelings." His fingers traced the letters engraved on the stone. "Sorry because I wasn't able to tell you... how I truly felt about you."

          Silence.

          "Ah, but that won't bring you back to life, would it?" He huffed. "You must be happy up there."

          Another minute of silence. Lucas sighed. "I discovered a piece by Moszkowski the other day," he said, taking his phone out and looking for the pdf file he downloaded. "It's a duet for violins. Op. 71 was it?" He tapped on his phone, scrolling down the pages of the score when it appeared. "I really wanted to play it with you. It looks challenging. Reminds me of the sightreading games we used to play when we're bored out of our minds."

         He kept on scrolling, but stopped when he noticed the chilly air enveloping his figure. Lucas looked up at the darkening sky, lips forming a thin line. "Seems like the clouds don't want me staying here for 5 hours straight again," he muttered. He breathed deeply, opening his violin case. He took his violin out, applied rosin and tuned, before standing up and facing his best friend's grave.

          "In the honor of my dear friend Aubrey," he said, not caring if he looked like an idiot talking to air, "I'll now play a piece by V. Monti." He raised his violin, about to play. "Czardas."

         The moment his fingers touched the strings, the sounds around him died down. Only the melody that he's playing was heard as he poured his heart and soul into his performance, eyes closed, body swaying, eyebrows arching.

         The perfect steps into becoming a successful soloist.

         His lips curved into a small, satisfied grin as the piece came into an end. "Almost screwed up there." He laughed wholeheartedly, gazing down at his fingers. "Dang, shaky bow. It would've been bad if a minute of legato turned into a minute of ricochet."

         For a moment, he seemed to have forgotten that he was all alone in the vast cemetery he's in, as he just stopped to think about... everything.

          'Right,' he thought bitterly, his grip on his violin tightening. 'I have to leave.'

          He commanded his hands to pack up, but for some reason the violin he was holding felt heavy. Heavy enough that he almost let go of it. He gasped in surprise, collapsing on his knees as he hurriedly put the violin in its case with his trembling hands. 'Dang it, why is this happening?'

          Then...

          "Lucas, I have a question."

           A voice spoke.

           He whirled around, eyes widening. The sky is getting darker as each second passed, but he paid no heed to it as his gaze roamed around. And with a sharp breath, he stared at her grave, uttering her name, "Aubrey...?"

         "Why do you look tired lately? You're not your usual self."

         That's...

         "Well, I have worries too, you know." He clearly remembered replying. Lucas stayed beside the grave, staring at nothing as the duo's conversation played in his head like a film.

          "Hmm... So you're tired because of those worries. Mind telling me about them?" Aubrey brushed her black bangs to the side, placing her chin on her palm as her eyes stared into Lucas' hazel ones.

          "I had a thought. It just went through my mind randomly. It felt weird, because I somehow tricked my mind into thinking that it would actually happen," the boy replied, hands wrapping around the chain connected to his seat. He swung his legs back and forth, staring at the playground around them.

          "What is it?"

          "You, my family, my friends, everyone I love... I thought that if you guys were gone, memories that we shared would slowly fade away from my mind, leaving me thinking whether you guys are real or not. It scared me so much, because honestly..." he took a deep breath, "...I don't want you to leave. I want all of you stay."

          Aubrey let out a hum. "Now that's some wistful thinking." She smiled, before playing with the swing she's on. "You can't stop a person from leaving. You can't make them stay when it's time for them to go." She stopped. "But that thought just shows your deepest fears..." Aubrey faced Lucas with a grin. "...and desires."

          "Huh, you think so?" the boy replied. "You sound so wise for a girl two years younger than me. Heck, you're 15. You're making me feel stupid here," he added with a groan, making the female giggle in amusement.

          "But listen, Lucas." Aubrey jumped off the swing set, pointing at the sky. "Let's pretend this is the last day of earth. At midnight, the world will end." 

          Lucas snorted. "That's dark. Literally."

          But Aubrey just went on, ignoring his comment. "You still have time before the world ends. What do you do?"

          "Have fun..?" Lucas replied hesitantly, unsure of his answer. "Spend time with my family and friends. Watch the sunset or something and just chill, I guess."

          "Sunset huh?" she repeated. She then gazed at the setting sun beyond the horizon. "Now that you've done all that, does that make all the moments you experienced fake? Does that make them a figment of imagination?"

          Lucas was silent the whole time, waiting for her to finish. "Besides, why did you even choose to do that? The world is ending, so what's the point of having fun? It's all going to end anyway," she added.

          Lucas' eyerbrows crossed. "I...don't know. Since it's going to be the end, might as well feel like I'm in paradise right? After all, I won't experience it again. There would be no recitals, no breakfast, lunch, dinner, etcetera, etcetera." He took a deep breath, then resumed, "As for the moments. My answer would be no. I went through them for real, and they would continue to be real."

          "There you go." Aubrey chuckled. "You just shut your fears down," she said, earning a confused look from Lucas. Aubrey raised a finger up, smiling. "When a person dies, you won't get over that loss. You can however, live with it. It's like reading a book. It's hard to turn the page when you know they won't be in the next chapter, but the story must go on. That doesn't mean that they weren't there, in fact, they were there, even though they're not in the end. They will continue to be there, for as many times you reread the book and flip to the pages. They will forever be there, printed on the pages of the book you're reading, and if you lose them, that doesn't change the fact that the book is published for people to read. There are a lot of copies out there, each proving that what you just read is true."

          Aubrey then looked at the ground before looking up to meet Lucas' eyes, finger pointing at her temple. "And now that you've read it countless times, the words that formed the sentences and paragraphs, they're now embedded in your mind," she then pointed at her chest, "and your heart."

         She took a step forward to Lucas, extending her hand for him to take. "That's why I have a favor." She entertwined her fingers with his. "If ever my heart stops beating, please continue your story. A death of a character doesn't mean the end for the book."

         ...

         That's right.

         This isn't the end yet.

         Slowly and surely, Lucas regained his composure, a bright, big smile now plastered on his face. His eyes no longer held darkness, but instead shone with a profound confidence.

          That's how he left her stone with a sentence full of hope:

          "Goodbye, Aubrey. Until next time."