The Prologue There was no music. There was no beat. I didn’t even have a chance to breathe. My right hand shook rapidly under the table. The green and blue lights dimmed as the room burst into eruptive applause. Many of the overly-excited girls in the back grabbed their cups and held it high about their heads, their inaudible cheers forcing a tiny grin on my face. It was impossible to describe the sensation. Four hours had flown by in one performance. Four hours… Time was irrelevant. There was no point in keeping track of it. While I played, it was just me and the music. The music… It challenged me. It made me remember things I wish I could forget. It was my curse. Escaping it was not an option. I was stuck with it, our bonds forged through time and experience. But yet, there was something comforting about it. Something beyond explanation. Music was my life, and I had relied on it for so long. I knew that now. As I stood on the stage before my audience, I took a swift bow and breathed out. A single tear escaped my eye. It fell down and looped around my smile. This was freedom. This, of all things, was my paradise. Valentino Ramos
10
