Alyssa looked around at the sting instruments and guitars propped up on the walls of the teacher’s classroom. The warm, yellow light gave it a cozy sense that Alyssa’s house often overshadowed, the vanilla scent beckoning her to leave behind the quiet cold. Comfy chairs lined the inside and a few music stands were titled at different heights. Looking down at the classy watch on her wrist, she realized she was a bit early.

“What instrument do you play?” Mrs. Wang asked. Mrs. Wang was Bruno’s teacher, and she was an assistant at the school. She was rather aloof according to many of the students, and didn’t seem to focus much on the race divisions that viciously divided her classes.

“Oh,” Alyssa trailed off, brushing her hand against the large body of a piano. “I used to do piano, but it’s been a while.”

The sound of a jittering bell alerted Alyssa and Mrs. Wang that Bruno had entered. “I’m sorry, it seems like I’m a bit late,” he said, placing his guitar bag on the ground. His thick eyebrows always seemed to be elevated, like tilted crescent moons; he always looked nervous and surprised.

“Well, since everyone is here, why don’t you try writing some pieces with Bruno?” Mrs. Wang asked pleasantly, handing Alyssa blank score paper and a traditional wooden pencil.

“Sorry, I’m only here for a… demonstration?” Alyssa said, giving a pleasant smile to avoid any awkward confrontation.

Mrs. Wang pushed the large circular glasses up the bridge of her nose, a judgemental look souring her expression. “You should have gone to an orchestra, then. People come here to write and play music. So, write.”

Alyssa jumped nervously, alarmed by her serious tone. She grabbed the paper and pencil and sat down beside Bruno, writing down the notes while humming to herself.

The top of the bathtub’s impermeable reflection sputtered as air bubbles fractured the surface before Alyssa’s head burst through, her head stretching the layer of water before it popped over her skin. Coughing and hacking, she struggled to regain her breath while her nose stung with the fiery sensation of liquid water. No matter how hard I try, my body always wins, she thought as she desperately tried to slow her deep breaths. Each breath felt like a brand new one that her body was taking in, and the sudden rush of relief she felt was heavenly. She sunk her head lower into the frigid water once more until it confusingly lapped at her cheeks.

When they finally left Mrs. Wang’s music studio, Alyssa sighed with exhaustion. “That was tough,” she said, rubbing her eyes at the sun’s vicious rays. “Do you love music so much that you don’t find it strenuous sometimes?”

Bruno thought about it for a moment as he readjusted the guitar on his back. “It feels freeing to me. It’s a lot like breathing.”

Alyssa looked at him with a bizarre look before bursting out with laughter. “Well, you’re really good at it. And you definitely have a funny way with words,” she said, wiping a humorous tear from her eye. “Do you have anything after this? Do you want to go to the library with me?”

Not having any other plans or people to hang out with, Bruno eagerly accepted, although he did pity himself for not having anything else to do.

Alyssa quickly placed her books across the library table when she finally arrived.

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“You know, you’re really good at singing,” Bruno said, pulling out a score from his bag. “You didn’t tell me you had a knack for music, too. I’m jealous — you get good grades, you're popular, and you’re incredible at singing and writing.”

Alyssa cocked her head in curiosity while she looked at him. Bruno was the first person that seemed to just care about her for who she was, even though they could only hangout outside of school. “I need to stay here for a couple of hours. I told my mom I would be here, and she cannot find out that I was at a music studio.”

Bruno seemed to freeze up for a moment, an awkward curl at the end of his mouth. Of course Alyssa had other motivations for hanging out with him. “Why can’t she find out? You’re seriously incredible. I wish I had your talent and skill, Alyssa.”

“My parents want me to take over the family name.” She looked down at her hands and started picking at the skin. “You know my family history… we sold out a lot of people, and my parents don’t want those sacrifices to be meaningless. I’m supposed to carry it on.”

His face quickly falling, his crescent brows seemed accentuated by his disheartened eyes. “You won’t be coming back?”

“Oh, no, I definitely will. I just can’t have my parents find out.” She stretched her arms out on the table and brought her head closer to his, a refreshing expression blowing over her. “It’s just like you said. I feel like I can finally breathe.”

Just like that, their secret relationship blossomed like floret seeds after the dying kiss of winter. Alyssa and Bruno continued to write and play songs together, often with Alyssa’s ethereal voice layering Bruno’s enlightening playing as his hands glossed over piano keys or the thick strings of a guitar. Until, one evening, their relationship finally changed.

Bruno sat in his chair, sulking over a piece that he was working on. He erased the same spot on the paper until it became chewed up and soft after realizing he wrote everything in the wrong musical key. He longed for the relief of a cool drink despite the weather, and jumped at the sudden ice cold touch on his neck.

He whipped his head over to see Alyssa laughing, a can of flavored water in her hand. “Here you go,” she said, the jittery tones in her voice replaying in Bruno’s head, “I got your favorite.” She was wearing a white shirt, since she forgot to do laundry, and a black skirt, though both were beneath a thin wool coat.

“Never do that again,” Bruno lightheartedly replied as he popped open the can. Not long after the two began rehearsing with an ecstatic and cheerful Mrs. Wang, the welcoming yellow light of the music studio shifted toward a tepid gray-blue. Alyssa looked out the window and at the sight of snow, her shoulders and attitude seemed to immediately fall and drift like the flakes that had started coming down at an alarming rate.

“Oh dear, it looks like it’s going to start snowing really hard. You two should head out.”

They both quickly packed their bags and stood under an awning outside her house. Bruno had left his instruments inside to protect them from the sudden temperature change. “Are you okay,” he asked, looking concerned. “You seem a little down today, and you’re not teasing me as much.”

Alyssa extended her hand out into the snow, watching the thick tufts melt at the contact of her warm hand. “I guess I’m just not feeling the best because of the snow.” She uncomfortably rubbed the back of her neck. Neither of them were well dressed for the weather

“Why? I know people that hate rain, but not many hate snow.”

“It’s just hard to breathe, because the air kind of hurts, don’t you think? Sometimes, it hurts so bad… that I feel like I’ll freeze to death. From the inside out. The snow just suffocates me even more.”

Perhaps at that moment, Bruno realized that all those mysterious moments with Alyssa — when she cried in the classroom, the confusing way she spoke, their first encounter — meant something more. Something that would eventually lead to their fight.

“You never played in the snow as a kid, have you?” Bruno said, a smile lighting up his face.

“No, but—”

“That’s exactly what you need right now.” Bruno grabbed Alyssa’s hand and dragged her out from under the awning into the snow that melted beneath the touch of her skin.

“What are you—!” Alyssa cried, her eyes blaring in alarm.

“Playing in the snow with nothing else in mind is one of the most freeing things. So, let’s make some good memories together!”