The Piano

• Noah Edwards, Grade 4
• Short Story
• 2021

It had been many, many years since the piano had been played. At first, it was just days, until the days turned into weeks, and the weeks turned into months, and the months turned into years. Over the decades it had been in use, the piano had been played through musicals, concerts, and orchestras. Now the piano was a sad, glum and melancholy piece of furniture. Many people seemed to wonder why it was still there.
One day a young boy, aged 10 years old, stumbled across the piano. His family had just moved into an ancient, dilapidated old house in a city named Launceston that’d had a ‘For Sale' sign up for so long, the price had been lowered down by thousands of dollars.
Their family had moved into this house because back in New South Wales, his mum had a baby and there wasn’t enough room in their old house, (Also, his mum definitely knew a bargain when she saw one) so they’d needed to move.
When the boy entered the house, there seemed to have been a strange calling coming from the attic so he’d decided to see what was up there (for he was a curious little boy). As he stepped up into the attic, there the piano sat. He blew the dust off and slowly lifted the lid. The boy used to play piano in the school band, so he decided to try out a piece.
He played one of his favourite tunes, ‘Greensleeves’. He noticed that the piano was in tune. Strange, he thought, considering all the dust that had been on it. He saw a music book on top of the old piano. On the front in old, faded, cursive writing, it said, ‘A Wondrous Journey…’
The boy opened the page. He started playing a piece called, ‘Peaceful’. A cool, steady, gentle breeze started blowing through the room, even though there were no windows in the attic. He looked up and to his surprise, he was no longer in a dusty old attic, but a lush, beautiful, and green countryside.
When the boy stopped playing, the open, airy, peaceful countryside disappeared and the grey, dusty, crumbly attic walls reappeared. He turned to the next song in the book, titled ‘Haunted’.
His fingers trembled as he lifted them up to the starting notes; he wasn't sure if he wanted to play this song but it was as if he had no control over his hands, and they settled in place, ready to begin...
“Jeff!” called his mum.
“Coming!” he called back. As he walked out of the attic he glanced and wondered to himself if what had just happened was real. He promised himself to come back tomorrow, to see what “Haunted” had in store for him.