- "As you may have noticed from my accent, I am from Central Europe. At the age of 14, I was what they called a piano prodigy and have had already given many successful recitals and concerts. At 18, I'd received a grant which sent me to the town of Reyjk to complete my formation with one of the world's most famous piano teachers. Life was wonderful then. I was young, gifted and loved by everybody. But Reyjk was just another small European town and soon I met boredom, for boys and girls of my age were seldom. The only thing that kept me full of hope was the sight of that pretty girl getting out of her town car every Sunday at the bakery across the street from my apartment. She was the prettiest girl I'd ever seen and I fell deeply in love the very first time I saw her. I found out later that she was the niece of one of the richest men in the country, the Count Meyer, and that her name was Ekaterina. They lived in a great mansion about four miles away from town.
"One day, after my daily lesson, my teacher told me that he was invited by the Count and that I was welcomed to join him. My heart skipped a beat. At last, I would finally meet and be introduced to the girl of my dreams.
"When we arrived at the mansion, the parlor was full of people in their best dresses and suits. I had the impression that the whole town were there. Finally, we were placed in our respective seats for dinner and, coincidence or fate, my seat was across from Ekaterina's. That was the first time that I noticed the girl at her side. She wasn't as beautiful as Ekaterina but was full of life and had an extremely beautiful smile. The way they talked to each other left no doubts that they were sharing all their secrets. I had never seen her before in town or anywhere else and had learned later that her name was Stefania and that she was the Count's only daughter.
"For two hours, my look met Ekaterina's often and when she told me that she knew me by reputation and was longing to meet me, I missed choking myself with the wine which caused the two girls to laugh for a good five minutes. After dinner, all the guests were invited in the great ballroom where an orchestra was playing Vienna waltzes. I looked for Ekaterina but too late, she was already dancing and swirling on the floor. Her feet barely touched the surface of the floor which was swept by her long white gown at each step.
"I waited for my chance to dance with her but it was hopeless. Her ball's requests list was completely full.
"Then I heard the first notes of the Blue Danube waltz. My favorite piece. As usual, Ekaterina was already on the floor. I looked around and realized at that moment, as odd as it seemed, that Stefania hadn't danced with anyone yet, and was sitting among her guests watching her cousin dance. She laughed joyfully and hummed the melody of the waltz. I crossed the ballroom proudly, stood straight in front of her, bowed my head slightly and extended my right hand towards her in a perfect manner.
"What happened next, I was not sure. Stefania stared at me with incredulous eyes, turned to her guests embarrassingly, her fingers gripping and pulling at the table cloth. Tears were running down her cheeks plentifully. Desperate tears; she cried out loud as if she had lost a dear parent and her whole elegant body was shaken with spasms of anger. The orchestra stopped playing at once and in that great ballroom, there was only one sound that could be heard. The sobs of Stefania Meyer.
"Immediately, the Count, Ekaterina and the governess were around Stefania trying to calm her down. I was paralyzed by the scene and stood there without a word. I could not understand what crime I had committed but I could feel all the reproving looks on me, and above all, Ekaterina's angry look. Stefania began to calm down. The spasms hadn't left her body yet when Ekaterina pulled her chair out from the table.
"What I saw and what my emotions were at that moment I could not describe. The girl whom I had invited to dance before all the town was... in a wheelchair."
