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THE DISSIDENT

Philip John
Lucy had always wanted to play the piano but her artistic ambitions outstripped her talents. And so over the years, Lucy had to be content with being a loyal wife and a diligent homemaker. What more ennobling work could a woman do? But Lucy had so much music bottled up inside her.
One evening, Lucy's husband Mark brought home a musician friend named Andre for dinner. When Andre spoke, his words came from a profoundly melancholic region in his soul. Later, as the evening wore on, Andre confided his secret to Lucy and Mark: he was not of this country. He had been exiled from his homeland. Back home, he and his people had rebelled against a fascist dictatorship but the rebellion was ill-planned and had been squashed. Later, Andre and several other people who had played a part in the rebellion were
expelled for being 'dangerous dissidents.' Andre had been a composer. After the revolt, his records had been banned from stores. And so Andre now carried his music inside him, as he moved through a foreign land.
Lucy took to Andre instantly. Years of living in a marriage that had stifled her soul had created a similar void inside her. And so as Andre spoke about the 'lost music' of revolution, Lucy fell in love.
One evening when Andre dropped by, Lucy was alone. Mark was out of town for the weekend. Andre and Lucy opened a bottle of wine and started talking. One thing led to another and they kissed. Lucy asked Andre to make love to her.
'I have a curse,' Andre warned. 'Whoever makes love to me carries my melancholic music inside them forever. It is a tumultuous noise.'
'I want your music,' Lucy said. She wanted to consume the fire of Andre's art so that it might become her own. It had
been a long time since Andre had been with a woman. So he relented and they made love. The next morning, Andre left before Lucy awoke.
Lucy’s alarm clock rang. As she reached for the alarm to turn it off, her fingers experienced a tremor upon touching the clock and a shrill piano note pierced the air. Startled, Lucy sat up in bed. She touched the sheets. Another piano note. She ran to the kitchen and touched forks, knives and spoons. Everything she touched created a series of piano notes. But since Lucy didn't know how to play, the music was far from pleasant; it was off-key, discordant and it followed her everywhere she went.
Suddenly, the doorbell rang.
'Who is it?' Lucy asked.
'It's me,' a voice said. It was Mark. He had come back earlier than expected.
T can't come to the door right now,' Lucy blurted.
'Open up, I'm famished!' Mark said.
As Lucy retreated into her bedroom, her hand knocked down a vase but her fingers released a cacophony of piano notes that drowned out the sound of the vase crashing.
■You bought a piano!' Mark laughed.
'Oh, I can't wait to see what you can do!'
Philip John is an advertising professional, writer and teacher who lives in Bangalore, India. Read more of his work at facebook.com/labyrinths.philipjohn