1.1. Lumière

It was the summer of 2112. Autumnfield in the middle of a dry spell: in these hot days, the sun was a friendly thief of night, all the more welcome after a rainy spring. When it caressed the window sills and front porches, sending a million bright ambassadors of morning into the city and town homes, it teased people from their beds with sweet promises of brightness, warmth and days without care. It was the middle of the summer holidays. School had long taken its bow and left the stage for walks in the fields, games in the parks and dips in the lakes around Autumnfield. Many of Frank Clearwater's schoolfellows were on trips abroad with their families, but his parents couldn't afford these ventures: so Frank, at 14 years old, spent most summer days alone, fixated on his ambitions. He was out running, jumping, climbing trees, practicing fighting moves, swimming - and playing the piano.

It was Tuesday afternoon. The burning on Frank's skin matched his anticipation as he approached the Kaas school music hall: he had to show Miss Coltrane his process on "Lumière". The piano piece she had given him on Friday had inspired him enough to practice its entire first section for today. His teacher knew he liked challenges, and she usually gave him the right ones at the right time: this one particularly intrigued Frank for being a favourite of Tyler and Angela's; he had an idea of the piece, and appreciation for it, from hearing his parents play it ever so often.

His mood somewhat faded when Miss Coltrane opened the door. In the hall behind her, next to the grand piano, a boy was sitting. He seemed a couple of years older than Frank, he was slightly burly with a round face and short hair. What was that bloke doing there?

"Frank, we have a visitor today", Miss Coltrane said as she led him to the piano. Fancy that! So you have a diploma for stating the obvious, too. "This is Joel Mackay. He is a new student whom I will teach on the same days as you." Frank didn't answer, so his teacher added: "Joel came by early so I could introduce you. He lives at Fairview."

"So you're an orphan?", Frank asked him, only realizing the rudeness of his remark a bit too late. The boy nodded, but didn't answer, and Frank felt embarrassed. He didn't care much, though. After all, his presence made him a tad uneasy: the thought of being watched and listened to by a stranger while he presented works in progress alienated him.

Fair enough. Unexpected visitors shouldn't come between Miss Coltrane, the piano and him. Frank sat down. "I've done quite a bit of homework, Miss Coltrane", he said. "Then we shouldn't waste any time", she answered. "Let's hear it."

Frank merely played the first couple of notes, a bit hesitatingly too, before that chap Joel reacted. "Oh, I love this piece", he said. And he never spoke again for the duration of Frank's play. Instead, he took a deep breath, laid his head back and closed his eyes the very moment Frank gained security and the melody began to soar.

Joel drifted into the song easily and lightly. "Lumière" was a sad piece: a tale of loss and loneliness, passions and desires never fulfilled, and love forgotten. This boy Frank played it in a way that made Joel wonder whether he knew the true meaning of its words at all. Frank seemed to find great pleasure in the song's sadness, and the way he made it his own spoke to Joel: after all, what were you going to do in the face of sorrow and pain? Wasn't it the most noble endeavour to find beauty in them?

Mandy Coltrane heaved an inner sigh when Frank reached the part of "Lumière" he hadn't yet practiced. She recognized that in the past days, he had done a fair deal of work on it, much more in fact than many other of her pupils would have been willing or able to do. Still, after finishing the first section, he launched straight into the second, only to struggle with its unfamiliar notes. From time to time, Frank's alacrity and impatience became a spoke in his wheels of talent and aptness. From the corner of her eye, Mandy saw Joel return from his dreamy pose as Frank went back a step to repeat the last, failed sequence, this time with more fervour, but the same success. The first hint of frustration appeared on his face, so she stepped in. "Frank, let's stop it here. You have done some fabulous work since last Tuesday, and much more than I had expected - but you can't have it all in one go. Now that we heard what you have so far, why don't you go back to the beginning, repeat the part you know, and I'll jump in with remarks."

"Fair enough", Frank answered, easing up. "Well, you know me. Trying to force things." And she did: after all, Miss Coltrane had been his teacher for a good three years now. She was now in her early twenties, still studying music in Nova Pera and working part-time as a teacher at Kaas school, like she had when Frank first met her in 2109. She was a smallish, pudgy young woman whose rosy cheeks used to glimmer with bliss whenever it came to melodies: she shared that sentiment with Angela, and Frank remembered how quickly the spark of friendship had ignited between the two three years ago. Angela had quickly and happily agreed to afford Frank lessons with the student, and Miss Coltrane's appreciation for music had proven a fertile ground for his own ambitions from the get-go. She had long adopted the habit of nudging Frank when he reached critical points, reminding him to slow down his zeal and loosen his grip - something he rarely did by himself.

When it was time to leave, Frank turned to Joel for the first time since the beginning of the lesson. He offered him his hand to shake.

"My name is Frank."