When the Piano Sleeps (LingOrm)
Ling Kwong lives in a quiet house that hums with the sound of rain and the faint, haunting melodies of her own mind. At thirty, she is both woman and child - a rare condition she's lived with since she was fourteen, when her parents discovered that her sense of self sometimes drifts into a childlike state. Protected all her life, she has never known the world beyond her home's iron gates.
Until Orm Kornnaphat Sethratanapong arrives.
Orm is a pianist - patient, warm, and quietly lonely. She is hired by the Kwongs to teach Ling piano, but she soon realizes that her student is unlike anyone she has ever met. Ling's laughter carries innocence, her gaze burns with a woman's longing, and her hands tremble between playfulness and passion when they touch the piano keys - and sometimes, Orm's own.
As the lessons continue, the house fills with unspoken tension: the way Orm's voice softens when she guides Ling's hands, the way Ling's eyes follow her like a secret prayer. But when Orm learns the truth about Ling's condition, fear wraps around her heart. Can she love someone whose mind sometimes drifts away from her - someone who is both a child in spirit and a woman in soul?
Ling, however, is certain. In her lucid moments, she knows what she feels - and she's willing to fight for it. Even when her parents disapprove. Even when Orm pulls away. Even when her own mind betrays her.
