A Soothing Melody

OJ had been running around the hotel for the past few hours or so. For some reason, literally every single object was getting on his nerves today. Fan wouldn't shut up to him about his blog, Balloon somehow got locked in his room AGAIN, and Yin-Yang almost spent his entire balance on Dr. Fizz because someone thought it'd be funny to tell him his banking details...

And of course, there was still so much to do. So, so much to do... it was all just so tiring...

He couldn't take a break, though. Not now. Pretty much everyone else was busy... Soap and Pickle hanging out with Mic, and Paper personally requested the day off due to all the stress.

...That was the entire list of people he trusted to run the hotel in his absence. Damn.

He was about to head off to reply to billing emails, when he heard a very faint noise coming from Mic's room.

But wasn't Mic out today? He could've sworn he saw her leave...

He stepped closer to the room, and realised that they weren't just vague, random noises at all.

They were notes. Melodic, beautiful notes...

He pressed his ear to the door, just listening to the way the notes seemed to flow together to form such a soothing song. OJ couldn't help but be enchanted by it, attracted like a moth to a flame by the way each note seemed to linger in his mind. They were played with such confidence, such precision that he couldn't help but be fascinated by them. The notes seemed almost like dancers, not the bones of the song itself, playing and sliding along with each other.

He wouldn't dare go in, not even if it meant he'd hear the notes more clearly. He knew it might disturb the perfect, mesmerising piece he was hearing now. He'd wait. And it was a pleasure to wait, hearing those muffled notes through the door tell their story. The song was warm, and pleasant, and he could almost imagine it played in the background of a fancy gala, or something of the sorts.

And once the piece was over, he pushed open the door to Mic's room, only to find-

Paper.

Playing the piano.

Why was he even surprised? Of course Paper can play piano, what can't he do...

Paper's face flushed a delicate pink, his eyes meeting with OJ's, completely frozen as OJ approached him.

"Oh my god- Paper you can play the piano?! That was flawless! Captivating, soft and delicate... I loved it."

"Wha- you weren't meant to hear that! Not now, anyway! It was gonna be a surprise...-"

OJ's already brilliant smile widened further at those words.

"It was! In fact, it was probably even more of a surprise than you intended it to be. I didn't expect to randomly hear a song when I walked past this room... but I did! A wonderful song at that. Plus, it was even more of a surprise when I stepped in and saw it was you."

"Oh... well... I- I was just practicing, really..."

The blush once again returned to Paper's face, and OJ couldn't help but feel a small sense of pride.

"Well, now that's got me thinking... maybe we should have a dedicated music room that isn't just a corner of Mic's. I had no clue you could play! And it might encourage some of the objects around here to find new hobbies that aren't just 'break everyone in the hotel down'."

Paper giggled a little at that, nodding along, before looking up at his boyfriend with a sly little smirk.

"...You just want an excuse to hear me playing more, don't you."

"Wha- how did-"

It was now OJ's turn to flush a bright red, as Paper got up and placed a warm, loving kiss on his cheek.

"I know you, honey."

"...That you do."

There was a moment of silence, as OJ's eyes wandered from his lover to the piano, before refocusing on Paper.

"Do you think you could play something else? For me?"

It was asked in such a pleading, innocent tone, one he knew always worked on Paper. In just a matter of seconds, he was back on the seat, and his fingers were already reaching for the keys again.