Melissa was diagnosed with leukemia and she had only few days to live. Melissa was the lead singer and the guitarist with a local band. She always wanted to compose a masterpiece at par with those of Led Zeppelin or Jimi Hendrix. And now after hearing the news of her blood cancer she was devastated.

‘I haven’t done anything wrong. I haven’t seen life or enjoyed it fully. Why should I die so young?’, she cried and cried.

‘The lights will fall and the crowds will roar. I will pick the string when there will be absolute silence and when I start playing, the crowds will sway to the tunes forgetting themselves and their surroundings..’ she used to tell her fellow band members.

Now that she’s diagnosed with cancer, all her dreams died and she has only few more days to count. Burdened by the fact that she couldn’t live longer and that she wouldn’t be able to compose a masterpiece, she became restless. She stopped eating properly and stopped her medication also. Consequently her health failed and she was admitted to the John Hopkins Cancer Institute.

‘Medication will act only if you are in peace miss Melissa. You have to co-operate with us, so that…’ stopped Dr. Lewis. ‘So that I die more peacefully… Dr. Lewis…’ she continued.

The doctor held her hand and both of them walked to a nearby room. ‘You see the boy on that bed…today is his last day. He’s suffering from the same disease as yours. But as you can see, he’s not bothered about his death anymore. Two days back he was flirting with a beautiful and a young nurse from our hospital. A day earlier, he called up my daughter for a date. And today you can see him with those two girl friends of his…’

Melissa slowly opened the door and walked into the room. ‘Hey gorgeous … care for a kiss…’ the guy asked. ‘What…’ Melissa screamed.

‘Nothing ma’am, please come and sit by my side…’ he invited after introducing himself as Larry. ‘How can you be so happy when you know that you are dying today…?’ Melissa asked him.

The smile on his face suddenly vanished and his face suddenly turned gloomy. He looked into my eyes and said slowly, ‘If not today, I will die tomorrow. And it won’t take long for tomorrow to come. It’s inevitable’

‘The most important time in your life is now. The past is over and the future is unpredictable. You don’t have control over it. But the present, it’s in your hands. Make the most of it…’ he said and pulled Melissa close to him after laying his hand on her waist. ‘You are sex.x.yy… ‘, he said.

Those words spoken by Larry seemed to have made their mark on Melissa. That entire melancholic mood seemed to have diffused into thin air and she was seen laughing and enjoying.

The whole day she spent with Larry. There was an animal magnetism in him and she felt being drawn to him. And when it was time for her to sleep, she said, ‘Larry, we’ll meet tomorrow…’ and Larry placed his palm into hers and clasped it. ‘Today is my last day Melissa, I don’t think you can see me tomorrow…’ his face turned pale. ‘No Larry, you will live for me, to accompany me and the reason you know Larry… cos… I love you Larry. It may sound funny. I have been with you only for a day. I don’t know much about you. But because of you and your inspiration, I am gonna work on the masterpiece from this very moment on. And Larry you are gonna be the witness for all this. You are gonna live Larry….’ Melissa said even as she kissed him on his forehead and left the room in tears.

The next day Melissa woke up fearing for the worst. She knew that she’s comforted Larry for one last time with her soothing and loving words. She slowly opened the door and was shocked to see Larry waking up from his sleep. ‘Larry, you are fine…’ she rushed to him and touched him with her hands.

‘Yes… I am very much… perhaps your love still kept me alive’ he said. Melissa reached to him and kissed him on his forehead. ‘Let’s escape from this hospital and help me create my masterpiece…’ she said. ‘But what about the doctor, he will never let us out of this place… at least he will never let me out...’ Larry said.

‘Doctor Lewis… Doctor… ‘ an attendant was seen running towards the doctor’s room. ‘Melissa is missing and she left this note in her room’ and the doctor stood aghast.

‘Welcome Larry, this is my recording studio’, she said as she opened the doors. Then she picked up the electric guitar and connected it to the amplifiers. Larry sat on a chair when Melissa pulled the guitar in her hand and started to play.

‘I want something new… something refreshing… Play a new song for me…’ Larry told her. Melissa kept on playing and playing, changing tunes after tunes. ‘uuuhuuu…. Not at all impressive..’ Larry said. And he stood up and went behind Melissa and held the guitar from behind her.

‘These strings, they are as sensitive as the curves on your hip…’ and he pinched her skin and she picked a string. He then ran his fingers over her back and she moved her fingers over the strings.

‘Play it again.. the same tune...’ he said. As she played the same.

‘Wonderful’ he said, ‘now make slight improvisations on the pick’ and slowly Melissa started playing the tune. ‘Wow, it’s great, I liked it too… ‘, Melissa said.

‘Then start recording… right now…’ Larry insisted and Melissa switched on the recording instruments and adjusted the mike and started to sing and play…

‘Wonderful… this is the best song I have ever heard…’ he said. The next day Melissa’s band members reached the studio to find her sleeping on the floor. They woke her up. And she looked around for Larry. He wasn’t there. ‘Hey wonderful song Melissa… you played it all alone…’ a member from her band said. ‘I have already contacted Sony BMG regarding this song…’ yet another one added.

Melissa was all the while thinking about Larry. She reached the hospital to find about Larry when she started to vomit blood. Doctors led her into the emergency and were sorry to inform her band members that she has only a few more minutes to live. Melissa was all the while searching for Larry, but he wasn’t seen anywhere.

Suddenly Larry came into the room much to her astonishment and she slowly removed her oxygen mask with open hands asking Larry to hug her. And the next minute she lay dead on her bed.

Her hit single ‘The lover boy’ went on to break all time records. It was released posthumously. And it was one of the biggest hits of the millennium, with Melissa being crowned as the queen of Solo rock.

Melissa’s got her inspiration from Larry. She fulfilled her lifetime ambition of becoming a great rock star because of Larry. And Larry died in the same night in the hospital, the day when Melissa proposed him. And he died a peaceful and a happy death with Melissa in his heart and the love she showered him upon with.