Hollow

The following days were marked by a heavy silence in Momo's hospital room. The revelation of his abusive childhood had cast a long shadow over him, and it was as if the weight of his past had become an ever-present companion. Lilia and Mr. Crone remained steadfast in their support, knowing that Momo's journey to healing was now intertwined with the painful secrets of his past.

The hospital's clinical white walls and the mechanical beeping of machines seemed to fade into the background as Momo descended into his own thoughts. He had been living with an unfathomable burden, a burden he was now compelled to confront.

One evening, with the sun setting outside, Mr. Crone and Lilia sat by Momo's bedside. The atmosphere was heavy with unspoken questions, and it was clear that Momo needed to share his past, to unburden himself of the painful secrets that had haunted him for so long.

Momo hesitated for a moment, his fingers tracing the air in signs that were almost hesitant. Then, he began to recount his story.

"I was born to a family that had always been deeply involved in music. My mother was a talented pianist, and my father was a renowned composer. Music was their world, and they expected it to be mine too."

He paused, his eyes distant, as though revisiting the past.

"My earliest memories are of my mother sitting at the piano, her fingers dancing across the keys. She was a virtuoso, a maestro of the highest order. I would watch her, entranced by the beauty she created."

Momo's hands trembled slightly, the memories of his mother's music intermingling with the abuse that had followed.

"But my fascination with music came at a price. My mother, a perfectionist, was unrelenting in her pursuit of excellence. She believed that I was her prodigy, that I had to live up to her expectations. The piano was her way of teaching me, but her lessons were brutal."

His voice cracked, and he took a deep breath to steady himself.

"She would lock me in a room for hours, forcing me to practice the piano until my fingers ached and bled. If I made a mistake, she would strike me with her ruler. It wasn't just discipline; it was cruelty. I feared the piano, even though I loved it."

Momo's confession hung in the air, the room filled with the anguish of his past. Lilia and Mr. Crone listened in stunned silence, their hearts heavy with the knowledge of the torment Momo had endured.

As he continued, his story took an even darker turn.

"My mother believed that my inability to hear the music was a hindrance, a flaw. She blamed me for it, as though it were my fault. She would scream at me, telling me that I was a disgrace to the family, that I would never amount to anything."

Momo's eyes glistened with tears, his body trembling with the raw emotion of his recollections.

"One day, in a fit of rage, she took a heavy object and struck me across the head. The blow was so powerful that it left me deaf. She... she never touched the piano again after that."

Lilia and Mr. Crone sat in stunned silence, their hearts aching for Momo. The revelation was like a gaping wound, exposing the depths of cruelty that had marred his childhood.

Momo's eyes were filled with a mix of pain and anger as he signed, "My mother... she took away my hearing, but she also took away my voice. She silenced the music in my heart. That's why I believed that God spoke to me through the piano, because it was the only way I could hear the beauty of the world."

Lilia translated his words, her voice trembling with emotion.

Momo's confession left a heavy, unsettling feeling in the room. It was as if the truth had unveiled the deepest corners of his soul, revealing the wounds that had never healed.

As the night deepened, the hospital room was filled with an unspoken understanding. Momo's journey was not just about recovering from his suicide attempt or regaining his physical strength; it was about reclaiming his music, his voice, and his identity.

The darkness of the past had been laid bare, but the path forward remained uncertain. The truth had been spoken, but the healing had just begun.

And so, Chapter 26 ended with a sense of emptiness, a void that begged to be filled with the harmony of Momo's music, a journey that would require courage, resilience, and the unwavering support of those who loved him.