Crossing The Mental Line

Chapter 5: Friendships

Her head bumped multiple times against the walls of the CAR, with many competitors staring at her, wondering why a First would be sleeping in such a position. Her mouth was open widely and drool was slowly trickling down the side of her chin. Simply put, it was a horrible sight to see, especially when travelling up a hill. Carl was sitted beside her and he tried his best to conceal the ever growing smile on his face. It was funny, how such  cold Firsts would even be letting a small smile slip consciously past their fingers.

However, the joy soon came to an end as they saw their headmaster.

The headmaster, as they soon came to find out, was Mr Ace.

Mr Ace was not your usual fierce but mean well headmaster. He had a face of a 23 year old but had a personality of a 56 year old grown man. His age was kept a secret from everyone.

"Good morning everyone. We will be testing out the hall today. Remain your 5 feet apart rule and no dispute will occur."

His eyes drifted to Val and he sighed exasperatedly.

Her mouth was still open and her eyebrows were tilted downwards. She was once considered a pulchritudinous chestnut haired girl, but her appearance now told everyone else otherwise.

Mr Ace cleared his throat twice to try to awaken the "sleeping beauty", but she had drifted a little too deep into Dreamland. Having no other choice, he walked up to her and gently shook her shoulders.

Her eyes fluttered open immediately and shock was soon noticable on her face. She hopped out of her seat and joined the back of the queue, her face gradually becoming erubescent.

"As I was saying, please keep your distance and follow me. Chit-chatting is strongly discouraged."

Entering the hall, she finally could understand why Switzerland was chosen as the place of competition. It was dangerous, just like every other country, but it was indisputably alluring. Its buildings and murals highlights the quietude of the place. She saw a piano on the stage and its ebony wood attracted everyone, including non-piansists.

Mr Ace switched to tour guide mode and started rambling on about the history of the place and everyone paid no attention to what the headmaster was trying to say.

"Girls and boys of all ages! Please! Pay attention! When you need water, press the streaks on the marble walls but get a bowl ready." (Just for your info, a bowl in then is a cup for you wonderful people)

"The piano on there is the only remaining piano in the world and Switzerland is immensely proud to house it. It was played by Beethoven and no one has touched it since.  It was be interesting to see a pianist play it. Not many are left." Mr Ace's face felt obliged to drop an inch lower than usual.

Val plucked up the courage and she boldly declared, "I'm a pianist!" As soon as she said it, she regretted it instantly. Mr Ace turned towards her and he burst out laughing.

"You? A pianist? Don't kid, child. We, the Swiss, despise lies." His words were brutal, but it was understandable.

She ignored him and stepped on the platform. Her ears were still untrained after listening to so many piano pieces, but she had never touched an actual piano. She only had a picture of the keys and she would hum to herself to produce the sounds.

Carl watched silently as her hands glided across the keys, as if familiarising herself with the keys. He was intrigued on how she would know how to play a piece without actually playing the piano before.

Her finger pressed an unpigmented key, producing the "E" sound. She smiled at herself and she continued to play a series of notes. She played her all-time favourite, My Heart Will Go On.