THE LULLABY
896 Words
Lina couldn't sleep after what happened in the East Wing.
"Take care of him."
The words were still ringing in her ears.
She sat at the window until sunrise. The key in her palm.
Warm. Like it had a heartbeat.
At 8AM, Adrian knocked on her door.
Not a maid. Him.
"Breakfast," he said. "In the garden."
The garden. Where Elena's grave was.
Lina followed him in silence.
He'd set up a small table near the lilies. Two chairs. Coffee.
But his eyes were red. He hadn't slept either.
"She spoke to you too, didn't she?" Adrian asked.
Lina nodded. "Take care of him."
Adrian laughed once, bitter. "Of all the people in the world,
she chose you. A girl she never met."
"Maybe she did meet me," Lina whispered. "In you."
He looked at her. Really looked.
For a second, Lina thought he might say something.
Instead, he poured coffee.
They ate quietly. The sun was warm. For the first time,
the garden didn't feel like a graveyard.
"I want to play the piano tonight," Adrian said suddenly.
"At 3AM. With you."
Lina's heart jumped. "Why?"
"Because Elena asked me to. And because I haven't in 3 years."
He looked down. "I'm scared. Will you stay with me?"
Lina reached across the table. She didn't touch him.
But she let her hand rest near his.
"Yes."
---
The day passed slowly.
Lina helped with letters. Adrian barely spoke.
He kept glancing at the East Wing.
At 2:45 AM, Lina went to the study.
Adrian was already there. Dressed in black.
In front of him, the piano. Covered in a white sheet.
He pulled the sheet off. The piano was old. Black.
Dust on the keys.
"I used to play for her every night," he said.
"She had cancer. The doctors said 6 months. She lived 8.
She made me promise to keep playing. Even after."
He sat down. His hands hovered over the keys.
Then he looked at Lina. "Sit."
Lina sat on the bench next to him. Their shoulders almost touched.
"Do you know this one?" he asked. His fingers pressed one key.
A soft note.
Lina shook her head.
"It's a lullaby," he said. "She used to hum it when she couldn't sleep."
He started to play.
Slow. Shaky at first.
Then stronger.
The melody filled the room. Sad, but beautiful.
The same song from the first night.
Lina closed her eyes.
Halfway through, she felt it.
The air got cold.
She opened her eyes.
On the piano, next to Adrian's hands,
were another pair of hands.
Faint. Transparent.
Playing with him.
Adrian saw it too. He didn't stop.
Tears were running down his face, but he kept playing.
The ghost hands moved with his. Perfect.
Like they'd done this a thousand times.
Then the music stopped.
The ghost hands were gone.
Silence.
Adrian put his head in his hands. "Elena," he whispered.
A whisper answered. Not from the piano.
From behind them.
`You're doing good, Adrian.`
Both of them turned.
Standing by the door was the shadow.
White dress. Long hair.
But this time, her face was clear.
Elena.
She looked tired. But she was smiling.
She looked at Adrian. Then at Lina.
`Take care of each other,` she said. Her voice was like wind chimes.
`That's all I ever wanted.`
Lina couldn't breathe. "Elena?"
Elena nodded. Then she looked at Adrian.
`I love you. Let me go.`
Adrian stood up. He took a step toward her.
"Don't go," he choked.
Elena smiled. `I have to. But I'm not leaving you alone anymore.`
She looked at Lina. `She's here now.`
Then Elena started to fade.
Like mist in the sun.
"Wait!" Adrian reached out.
Elena touched his cheek with a ghost hand. Cold.
`Goodbye, my love.`
And she was gone.
---
Adrian collapsed.
Lina caught him before he hit the floor.
He cried. For the first time.
Not quiet tears. Big, broken sobs.
3 years of grief coming out all at once.
Lina held him. She didn't say anything.
She just held him.
"I didn't answer the phone," he sobbed into her shoulder.
"I could have said goodbye."
"She knows," Lina whispered. "She knows you loved her."
They stayed like that until dawn.
On the floor of the study.
With the piano and the lullaby still in the air.
When the sun came up, Adrian looked different.
Still sad. But lighter.
He looked at Lina. "Thank you."
"For what?"
"For staying. For listening. For..."
He couldn't finish.
Lina stood up. Held out her hand.
"Come on. Let's open the windows."
They walked through the manor together.
Opening every window. Every curtain.
Letting light in for the first time in 3 years.
In the East Wing, the piano was silent.
The key on the piano was gone.
Lina checked her pocket.
The key was there. But it wasn't warm anymore.
It was just metal.
That night, there was no music at 3AM.
Instead, at 7AM, there was a knock.
Mrs. Hawthorne.
She looked at Lina. Then at Adrian.
Then she did something Lina never thought she'd see.
She smiled.
"Breakfast is ready, Your Grace. And Miss."
Adrian nodded. "Thank you, Mrs. Hawthorne."
As they walked to the dining room, Adrian's hand brushed Lina's.
This time, he didn't pull away.
The manor was still quiet.
But it wasn't empty anymore.
End of Chapter 7
- Writer
