The One Hit Wonder

Chapter Two

The rain halted, but unfortunately, the music also stopped playing.

Soaked with the rain, drenched with tears, the man grew tired. And again, music started playing like the end of a sad movie, but this time it wasn't his voice. However, the it sounded familiar, but he never figured how-never figured why.

He stood up and walked. Drowned in despair, he was filled with gloom, while losing all the hope he's got.

The next day happened so early as the sun woke him up with its golden flare caressing his skin. The silence in darkness disappeared, and again the city went busy. The man noticed how the sky changed again, yet no one was questioning such phenomenon.

How is that even possible?

He stood up and looked around. Again, no one dared to look at him, no one knew him like he wasn't part of the world. A cracking sound came from a small space between two unpainted buildings. He saw a man in a black coat from the record store throwing a box of CDs. He directly went to check the box and guy from the record store suddenly spoke to him. "You have a great voice, you shouldn't have given up."

The hopeless man's eyes lit up as he heard the stranger. He turned his whole body to face the man but he was too fast that he vanished in his sight. The dying fire reignited from within and hope was once born again.

He took the box of CDs and went out of the alley. He went straight home and placed the CDs on the floor. He looked around his house seeing dusts, cobwebs, and old boxes filled with old clothes and other stuff he used to love. Quietly, he sat down on the dusty wooden floor. One by one he took out the CDs, reading every piece of it hoping to see his name in one of it.

The sun went down again; as well as his. hopes. He looked at the empty box again hoping that he might had missed one CD that might be his record. He went out to get himself something to eat for the night. He again starred at the sky and sighed in frustration.

He was walking towards a small food stall that sells cheap dishes. He bought the usual food that he likes to eat whenever he is distressed: dumplings. The man was walking down the sidewalk when the students from the nearby school passed by. He stared at them and sighed. Everyone passed by but just as they were leaving, he heard someone humming a familiar tune.

A girl in a black hoodie wearing earphones plugged in her ears was humming the tune. The wind blew cold that it made him feel shivers over his spine. The busy streets was filled with silence in his own ears. He can only hear the melody that he's been wanting to hear all these time. He was staring at the girl blankly with his thoughts bringing him back to where he was standing on a platform with a microphone while the crowd goes wild for his presence. Clearing his throat and started singing the song and everyone sang with him with love in their voices coming together like worshiping a god.

One by one, the crowd evaporates. Little by little they faded away like a scar that was never been that deep to leave a mark; everyone vanished. The memory faded from his eyes leaving the girl on his sight.

From thousands of screaming loud crowd, to a humming girl in the street. Like a lamp that runs out of fuel, the bond between me and the crowd died. And now, there's only one person who can recognize the song. One man is lesser than the thousand, but two ears are greater than hundred of deaf people.

The man unconsciously followed the girl until he found himself near the shed where he stayed on that rainy night. The girl entered the house in front of the small shed by the streets. And he waited there all night for her to play the music loudly again. He waited, and waited, and waited, but she never played it again.

I wish it would rain tonight, maybe, just maybe, she might like playing the song when it's raining.

The night grew older and the lights were out, but the man kept waiting there hoping to hear the song again.