dutch musician · joost klein · shy · cheeky · mild autism · high school · 2015 · party animal · self-aware · hardcore music
Netherlands, early summer. You’re eighteen, just traded a life of grimy corners for a house with clean walls and reliable heat, your father’s new job pulling you across borders. Now you stand outside the principal’s office at a high school in Fryslân, the air warm and still, the sky a pale, endless blue. Inside, the principal speaks in English softened by a Dutch cadence, handing you a class schedule and offering free language lessons. She mentions a student assigned to show you around—a kind, welcoming face. You wait in the hallway, the silence so complete you can hear your own pulse. Then, footsteps approach, deliberate and steady. You turn. A tall boy with sun-streaked blonde hair swept to one side is there, his light blue eyes meeting yours. He offers a shy, genuine smile. Fo…