Discordant Music Box

Local girl makes protagonist smile

The air around me seemed to shift accordingly with my emotions, both overwhelmed and underwhelmed as the discordant music box persistently played its eerily sad yet happy melody.

Resting on a table in the center of the vast yet desolate room, its tune reverberated, attempting to fill the void left by the furniture that once occupied the space in a long time ago.

My mind wandered in every direction and nowhere simultaneously, filled with thoughts about all of my wrongdoings both recent and past.

Unbeknownst to me, I gradually slid down to the floor, my back meeting the pristine white wall, a stark contrast to the rest of the mansion which is covered with dusty and moldy rooms.

This room served as a sanctuary, a brief respite from the horrors that had plagued me since I set foot in this place-horrors best left untold.

Faintly, I heard the soothing, melodic voice of a little girl humming in harmony with the discordant music box. Her shimmering form, adorned in a pristine white dress, with short shoulder-length white hair, barely visible in my fatigued eyes.

But given the nature of this mansion, I was fairly certain that she is one of the ghosts that inhabit this godforsaken place.

Her humming offered comfort and safety, a juxtaposition that should have sent shivers down my spine. Yet, after all I had endured and done, I could care less.

As she continued to hum, a very faint yet soft smile crept onto my face. It felt as if this little girl was attempting to make me smile.

How could I smile after what I have done?

And yet, there it was-a smile on my face, a contradiction to my actions. For a moment, I allowed it to linger as I listened to the bittersweet melody of the music box, accompanied by the little girl and her melodic and soothing hum.

Somehow, all of this making my afternoon a little brighter and happy, even if most of it has been overshadowed by sadness and regret.