Bravely, he sits at the piano, hands going through the motions. He feels every note of his last performance, his swan song.

Nine-thousand nine-hundred and ninety-nine people rise, applaud. One stays seated, head down, emotions too much to bear, crying.

“Dad, I’ll always miss you,” she says under her breath.

David Maher is an aspiring writer trying to gain the confidence to complete his first novel by sharing stories, viewpoints, and his attempts at writing fiction.