A Lofi Fairytale
Lofi Girl and Lofi Boy Meet
The following is a story I submitted to the Lofi Girl January 2024 writing competition.
There was a time when all music fell silent. Speakers and headphones produced only static when the slightest rhythm or melody was introduced. Instruments themselves fell out of tune and couldn’t be played. Humanity fell into despair as even memories began to fade. Students held candle light vigils outside of concert halls. It is at one such vigil where our story begins.
The girl was standing with her just candle lit and was helping the boy next to her light his candle when she noticed he was also wearing his headphones. They were of exceptional quality and she smiled at the realization that they were the same model as her own. The only difference being his had the blue accent trim as opposed to her choice of red.
“You’re still wearing them?” She asked the boy once his candle was lit.
“Yes, I keep hoping the music will come back. When it does I want to be able to listen again right away.”
“That’s a sweet sentiment. I’ve worn mine for so long I just don’t feel complete without them.”
The pair shared a smile and listened as the first speaker started. With no ability to sing the people had taken up reading the lyrics to popular and moving songs. Poetry, once a lost art, was making a comeback.
When the first speaker was done the boy turned to the girl.
“What songs did you listen to when the music was still here?”
“I was always listening to lofi hip-hop music. And you?”
“Synthwave was my favorite. I like these lyric readings but all my favorites were instrumental. No words can capture that feeling.”
The girl smiled in recognition. In the coming days the two became good friends. They met again at a vigil then went for pizza. The girl was surprised when the boy made her a present of a playlist. He still believed that one day the music would return.
As time passed society moved on. The candle light vigils stopped once the weather turned cold. The girl and the boy became close friends and during Christmas break they spent everyday together. On New Year’s Eve they went ice skating in the park and stayed out until dark. When the sun had set and the cold of winter gripped they night they hurried back home. Standing outside the door to her apartment the sky was streaked by the bright flash of a shooting star.
The girl turned to the boy and asked, “Did you make a wish?”
“Yes, the same one as you. But it’s ok if it doesn’t come true.”
“What do you mean?”
“For these past few months all I have wanted was for the music to come back. Tonight I realized that if it never went away I may never have met you. Our time together has been more precious than all the music in the world.”
The girl’s heart swelled with joy to know the boy thought of her this way. Their time together meant so much to her too. Overcome with emotion a tear came to her eye and fell in time to signal the new year.
To this day no one knows why the music left. Only those two know why it came back at the stroke of midnight.