“Thank you!” I politely say, while stepping off the bus.

“No worries,” replies the bus driver, with a nod of courtesy.

It’s sunny today, and the sky is vibrant. It's not too windy, nor is it too hot (or too cold); it's just right. The nice atmosphere distracts me for a bit, as I wonder where to go, until my eyes land on a familiar drink in the hands of a woman nearby. Knowing my answer, I then begin to make my way over towards a coffee shop that I'm fond of, and the thought of tasting my favourite latte, brings a smile onto my face.

When I enter the place, the soft smell of coffee reaches my nose, as I go to place in my order. The girl at the counter asks for my name, and after handing her my money, I watch as she scribbles a few marks onto a cup, just before handing it over to her co-worker.

And as I wait for my drink to be made, the image of a vanilla latte decorating a part of the wall makes me think of a certain someone.

It’s been a while since I’ve been able to speak to Lay; I wonder what he’s doing on a day like this?

“Green tea matcha latte!” calls a voice, which snaps me out of my daze.

I take the hot drink from the girl, and with a thank you, I then exit the place.

Taking a sip, I feel at ease, as the liquid warms up my insides, and this is when I realise just how much I needed to be away from my assignments. I feel so stress-free right now, that I even find myself humming a soft tune to myself, as I walk down the streets, passing the many stalls along the way. My attention suddenly finds itself being grabbed by a particular shop, and as my gaze sets itself onto the grand piano displayed there, I can’t help but breathe in a small gasp.

It's simply gorgeous.

My fingers feel all tingly, and I know that they’re just itching to skim across those flawless keys.

So I reach out towards the door and give it a push, making the small bell at the top fill the place with a gentle ring, as I step inside. A worker politely greets me, and in return, I smile and say my hello. He eventually leaves me alone when I tell him how I’m just having a browse, and as soon as he goes back to doing his own thing, I gradually make my way over towards the grand piano.

It looks even better without a glass window in front of it, and I find myself quietly setting myself down onto the matching stool. I’m careful with where I place my almost-finished latte cup, as I continue to marvel the wonderful instrument in front of me. A sigh escapes me, as I go to gently trace my fingers across the surface of the black and white keys.

How long has it been since I’ve last played the piano?

I’m pretty sure it’s been a while, because my fingers feel a little loose.

As I try to refresh my mind, and become familiar with the instrument again, my thoughts are aware of another person entering the stall. Not thinking much of it, I then decide to push the idea away, and continue on with my playing. But it’s a little hard, because as I go on, I can't help but feel as though there is something, or rather someone, watching me, and the irking feeling repeatedly poking at me, causes me to stop halfway.

And when I turn over to see who it is, my eyes widen with surprise.

“Yixing?” I say, feeling slightly confused.

He was watching me the whole time...?

Lay’s warm eyes crinkle slightly, as he shows me that dimpled smile that I’ve come to adore so much. “That was beautiful,” he compliments.

And with the way he says that, I can see the love and passion that he has for instrument, on his face.

I blink, taken aback by his praise. “Oh, it honestly wasn’t anything, I was just…playing around,” I lamely say.

He arches an eyebrow. “Well, if that was you just ‘playing around’, then I wonder what you can do if you were trying?” he muses.

A meek smile makes its way onto my face, as I let out a nervous giggle.

Lay chuckles at this, “Hang on, I’ll be right back.”

I nod, giving him the affirmative to disappear, all while wondering what he has in mind. My curiosity is soon answered though, because a few seconds later, he reappears again, but this time, an acoustic guitar rests in his arms. I then watch as he pulls another stool over to me, and as he sits himself onto it, he flashes me a dazzling smile.

“Let me play with you.”

My mind is suddenly blank, and I think I’ve temporarily lost my voice.

I’ve seen him play the guitar (and the piano), and he’s simply amazing. Not only is he good with playing those instruments, but he also has a very nice voice to accompany the melodies that he can create. He just keeps improving more and more each day, so with how high his talent level is in comparison to my own, it makes me somewhat shy, but I know that I can’t refuse this offer.

“Okay,” I manage to utter out, as the feeling of excitement begins to build up.

Lay is pleased at my response, due to the sudden bright look on his face.

My fingers are now feeling shaky, as I start by playing three single notes. Lay immediately begins to strum, and for a split second, I panic. I then tell myself to concentrate all the nerves into a feeling of ease, and thankfully it works, because after those notes, my fingers find themselves smoothly moving across the keys, in a somewhat quick pace.

Lay continues his playing, somehow improvising with his guitar to make the two instruments fit together. My notes slow down a bit, and he takes this opportunity to match some of the beat, by emphasizing some parts with a harsher strum.

Our eyes meet for a brief second, and I shyly smile at him.

And I know I don’t exactly have the best singing voice, but being in this moment, it somehow makes me slip out a couple of sentences.

“I take out some coffee and come out to the street
I hum a song with light footsteps
The weather is nice – it’s hot but the sun is nice
On this great day, what are you doing?”

I’m surprised at how easily this comes from my lips, and is expecting to see him give me a strange look, but he doesn’t.

Instead, Lay gives me an amused smile, and starts singing back to me.

“Day off – it’s a sweet day of rest
I bum around at home all day when I start to miss you
Should I text you? What should I say?
I just called you but you’re not picking up.”

The butterflies become a little more intense in my stomach as I hear this, and I’m not sure to swoon at his soothing voice, or to feel surprised that he was thinking about me, as I was thinking of him.

And as he continues on, I can’t help but feel my cheeks warm up a little.

“It’s alright but I’m a bit disappointed but what can you do?
You are just too busy
It’s alright because it’s you and not anyone else
I’m always free whenever so please know this.”

We continue this duet, and whenever I find my gaze meeting his, an affectionate smile would be ready to greet me.

But the funny thing about our spontaneous song is that it feels as though we're talking to each other. Like how he continues on to sing to me about that one time where we had made plans to meet up, and he was so excited, only to have me call him at the last minute, to reschedule it. I show him an apologetic smile, and then sing back my response, telling him how a friend of mine had needed me for an urgent manner out of nowhere, which was why I had to do that.

By now, we hum together, allowing our voices to complement one another, with our instruments.

I can tell that he's having just as much fun as I am, and it makes me giggle.

Eventually, I can feel our little song coming to an end, as Lay starts to ease up the sound of his swift strums.

“Take me out,” he tenderly sings. “Take my heart…”

I hum along to this, gradually reducing the sounds of my piano keys. “Take you out,” I softly sing, “Take your heart…”

Our fingers slowly come to a stop, ending the impulsive duet. Lay then gets up from his seat, where he proceeds to take a hold of my hand. He then begins to bow, and it’s only then that I realise how the shop has suddenly become very packed. I give a few quick bows as well, to show the unexpected crowd my appreciation, as they merrily clap away.

Lay then voices out his gratitude for them watching us, and when the place begins to clear up a bit, he turns his attention back to me.

“You’re a good performer,” he says.

I smile at him, “And you’re even better.”

Lay returns the warm gesture, and I thank him. I thank him for allowing me to remember how wonderful it feels, to play and sing like that, and his expression softens. Because when you surround yourself with projects that consist of business and marketing, and have no time to enjoy yourself with your favourite hobby, then you start to doubt yourself for becoming rusty.

“You’re very welcome,” he says, and then bit by bit, a playful smile can be seen itching onto his lips. “So…take me out?”

“Take you out?” I repeat, somewhat puzzled.

He happily nods. “I haven’t seen you in so long, since you’ve been rather busy with your assignments,” he comments. “I miss spending time with you.”

I swallow at this, as he gives me a sheepish smile.

“So let’s go out,” he says, and then gives our connected hands a little swing. “Except this time…I don’t want to go out as friends.”

Having an idea where this is heading, my heart skips a beat, as a joyous feeling consumes me.

“I like you, so I want us to be a couple,” he sweetly says. “Do you feel the same—?”

The happiness within me takes over my body, as I suddenly find myself standing on my tippy toes, to place my lips against his. I’m surprised at how my actions resort to this, and I can tell that Lay is startled by the out-of-nowhere gesture. When I lean away, I see that his eyes are wide, as his lips form a tiny circle of surprise. My eyebrows slowly crease together with worry, because for a split second, I feel a slight hint of regret, for responding to his confession too hastily.

But the feeling of concern dissolves away as quickly as it had appeared, when he suddenly pulls me in for another kiss.

And as I happily melt into it, I realise that not only has he rekindled my flame for music, but no matter how great or old a song is, music always seems to bring people together.