| Chapter 1 Kallie pulled up to the building as she saw the moving truck already there, preparing to open the back of the truck and unload her belongings. With a smile, she got out of the car and met the drivers at the back. “Which apartment Ms. Leighton?” one of the burly movers asked her. “Uh, the service elevator is down the hallway, apartment 205,” she replied. She watched as the movers started to unbuckle the big items of furniture and she went inside. Her landlord, Mr. Castillo, greeted her at the door. “Welcome Kallie!” Mr. Castillo dropped a set of keys in her hands. “Place is all yours now.” “Thanks Mr. Castillo,” Kallie held the keys in her hand tightly as she smiled back at him. He was a little man; with his face showing his age spots and wrinkles around his eyes, worn khakis with suspenders that held up his pants over his potbelly and a white polo shirt. He had a gray corduroy hat on and held a died out cigar. “I’m sure you’ll fit right in here. I always like the youngsters. They give this old man a little pep in his step.” “Thanks again for letting me out the place.” “You’re welcome. If you need anything, you know where my apartment is. Welcome to the building again,” Mr. Castillo shook Kallie’s hand as he oversaw the movers doing their job. Kallie went up the flight of stairs to a light blue door with 205 in small brass letters. She put the key in the lock, turned it, and let herself inside. Although the apartment was on the small side, to her it was like a palace. As she walked inside, she walked into the living room, which was the biggest room in the apartment; she turned left into the small kitchenette, then walked into the bedroom, which she loved the most. It had a view of the whole neighborhood from a small outside terrace. She walked into the white tiled bathroom, which Mr. Castillo had redone for her: a new toilet and sink were added since she decided to take the apartment last month. She walked back into the living room as the movers were starting to bring in the furniture. ~*~ Kallie was unpacking her things that she had needed for the day, planning to start the major unpacking tomorrow morning. She had gone to the local deli on the corner to get some snacks to take her through the night. The cable man was going to come in and hook up her television; it was the one luxury she ha given herself. Not only was she going to get the 100 channels, but install the cable modem that she had when she was in New Jersey. The Internet was her solace, and making the week long driving trek to Los Angeles made her miss it even more. Not really in the mood for sleep, she spent the night unpacking her things. When she saw the clock reach about 4 in the morning, she was about to call in a late night and cuddle up on the couch, when she heard noises coming from the wall adjacent to the couch. She sat up and pressed her ear to the wall. It was guitar chords, no doubt about that, but when she heard the strumming of the tune, it made her press her ear to the wall even harder. It was breathtaking. She closed her eyes and felt the melody echoing in her mind, and found herself humming along with the chords. It was simple, but emotional, like the person playing the guitar was feeling every inch of the melody. Kallie found herself feeling it as well, wondering who was playing it. ~*~ Kallie woke up about three hours later, got herself ready and continued the unpacking of her things, when she heard the intercom buzzing. She pressed the button and answered it. “Hello?” “Timeless Cable for Kallie Leighton.” “Come on up.” She buzzed the cable guy in and a few minutes he arrived. “Where you want the hook-up miss?” the man asked. She showed him where she wanted the modem hookup and the cable installed. Within an hour he was done. “OK, you’re all set. Just sign here and you’ll be ready,” the cable man handed her a clipboard. She signed off on it and he left. When she heard the door slam, she ran to the computer and turned it on. She clicked on the America Online button and signed on immediately, thanks to the power of digital technology. “Welcome… you’ve got mail,” the familiar voice answered. She clicked on the mailbox and smiled as she saw the first letter. She clicked on it and read the letter: From: Strngalong To: Musekgrl Hey Muse! Hope your move is going OK. I already miss our little chats. Thanks for the recommendation of Holst’s The Planets. Jupiter is my favorite too LOL. E-mail me to let me know you’re safe. Hopefully you’ll be on soon. Kallie smiled as she read the e-mail. She quickly hit reply and wrote him back. From: Musekgrl To: Strngalong Hey String! I’m safe, thank the Lord LOL. Remind me never to sleep in a motor lodge again. I’m glad you like the selection. I was listening to it in my car on the way here… it gave me a new sense of adventure. Place is great, but it’s gonna take me time to unpack. Talk to you soon! She clicked the send button. She signed off and turned on her Instant Messenger just in case he signed on. She was longing to talk to him, aching for those magic words that poured from his keyboard into her soul. God, she was so lonely the past week, waiting for that moment she was going to talk to him again. She met him in the chat room “Music Studio.” She was bored on a Friday night about 2 months ago, not looking to find romance as most people do, no matter what type of chat room they were in. She saw the usual “16/f… IM me if you wanna hookup” lines, but she wanted to just chat about her love, music. She was a music teacher in a high school in New Jersey. Finally she met him. She got an IM. Strngalong: Ever hear of an Ionian scale? Musekgrl: Huh? Strngalong: It’s a question. So, ever hear of it? Musekgrl: It’s when you play from the root of the key to an octave above Strngalong: You passed the test LOL. Thank God because I though I wasn’t the only person looking for a date in here. That was all Kallie needed. They wound up spending the next 3 hours chatting. They talked about music, favorite artists and everything in between. They never talked about anything personal: no names, occupations, where they lived. All they discussed was music and their equivocal passion for it. All she knew about him was that he seemed to be some sort of musician. She spent the next hour unpacking, and got a good chunk of it done, when she heard the familiar tone on her computer. She ran to it and smiled. Strngalong: About time you signed on LOL Kallie smiled. She sat down at the desk and typed furiously. Musekgrl: It’s about time you were too Strngalong: How’s the new place? Musekgrl: It’s getting there. I’m just glad to have some familiarity again, now that I’m talking to you Strngalong: aw ::getting all mushy:: How’s the area you’re in? Not that I know where you’re from or where you moved to Musekgrl: It’s cool. It’s nice to have something to call your own. You know, starting your own life? Moving to someplace where you don’t know anyone and no one knows you? Strngalong: I know exactly what you mean. Wish I could be like that… be someone completely anonymous? Musekgrl: It’s not that hard. Pick up and go Strngalong: True Musekgrl: Anything new you’re working on? Strngalong: Yup. Actually, you were my inspiration Musekgrl: Now I’m the one who’s getting all mushy LOL Strngalong: Maybe I can play it for you sometime ;) Musekgrl: You never know. Listen I have to finish unpacking. Talk to you later tonight? Strngalong: You got a date. Later Musekgrl: Bye Kallie signed off and hummed while she was unpacking. She found herself humming to the tune she had heard the night before. She had the tune stuck in her head all day, she even heard it in her sleep, like some emotional lullaby. She wished she could play it on her piano, but she didn’t want her neighbor to hear it, and therefore being known as a snoop. Chapter 2 Contents |