 astronomizzle ♧ gryffinDORK | & the rest is drag ♣ #badluckDerf
The melody took minor key shift, turning softer and sentimental. Like worn wood and wistful sighs. Charles's thumb grazed the strings gently, drawing out each note as if it were something to be remembered and not merely played. His foot tapped out a beat slower than the song required, as if waiting for memories to catch up. An extension of himself, the guitar started humming an old lullaby now—one he used to fumble through in the quiet hours when Yukie rocked Ryunosuke by the little space heater they used to warm their home during the winter months, her voice softer than any charm he'd ever cast. He could still picture it: Yukie’s eyes low-lidded with exhaustion, their first son curled close, small enough to fit in one arm and a dream. His voice cracked just slightly as he murmured lyrics under his breath, barely audible even to himself. "Little stars over heavenly skies…you were magic ‘fore you ever opened your eyes…"
He blinked once. Twice. The air shimmered faintly with the dust of light and half-formed tears, but he didn't brush them away. Instead, his fingers found the next chord like a reflex—G major, strung lovingly. He didn’t notice Simon. Not yet. The not-as-young-as-he-once-was Head of Security, the familiar weight in a doorway, the guardian-turned-family who had been there when Charles couldn’t be—during his daughter's stormiest years. Charles would’ve wrapped him in a bear hug by now if he’d seen him, formalities be damned given the emotional journey his fingers were taking the man presently.
For right now, he was still in 2052. Still young, still learning lullabies from a woman who spoke little English and yet managed to teach him more about love than any textbook could. A nearby photo album fluttered open beside him with the corner of a baby photo peeking out―this one of Ryunosuke, still in diapers, hugging an infant Takeshi. Charles gave a soft, chuckling sigh through his nose and tapped the guitar once with his knuckles and was still very much unaware of the observer in the doorframe..
"Y’know," he muttered into the enchanted sunlight, though his tone were as though he were speaking to those two young boys in the photo, "if you listen long enough… some songs’ll play memories right back into the room."
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When you're stuck in a moment and your spark has been stolen .................................................. ...........
this is our time to own it, so own it.....................................
baby we were born with fire and gold in our eyes |