The Selectively Mute Girl Open Finished

Anatole peered over the piano, anxious for her to clear her throat and begin. It would be a miracle, a huge jump forward if he coaxed her to sing again, in front of him this time. It would be incredible.

From her first eyeing of him, his spirits were low. She wouldn’t do it, would she…?

She took a deep breath...and began. What?!?

What?!? The young lion’s eyes grew wider than canyons as he watched her sing the first verse, his hands on the keys, ready to jump in on the right count.

This was a song Patricia really liked. Feeling Good, Bublé version. When Anatole had eagerly told her he wanted to try piano, this was the first song she suggested. For the week after, it was the only thing Anatole had stuck in his head, the only music Patricia played in the car: an old tape of the song. “Trust me, you’ll love it as much as I do.” Too bad Patricia didn’t sing, and neither could Anatole. It would have made practicing day after day, alone, much better. Playing by ear, one of the few things Anatole could work out if he had a week on hand.

Anatole’s heart was fluttering, racing with delight as his fingers, like magnets, stuck to the first set of keys, playing the chords along with the chorus. ”Bum, ba-bum, ba-bum…” He muttered the tune to himself, beatboxing just a little as he followed along with her stunning pitches. Patricia and he would always shout that part together as Anatole hit the higher notes on the piano, then the low, then bouncing back up, striking the keys like he knew what he was doing.

He peered over the tip of the piano once again, checking on Marissa. ”Bum, ba-bum, ba-bum…” Her face was red, nervous, pensive. The more Anatole watched, the more worried he grew for her. Maybe this was the wrong idea? Could they even finish the song?

Marissa continued to sing, glancing over to Anatole who was playing the piano and beat boxing at the same time. She tried not to laugh and continued to sing, looking away from Anatole so she would not get nervous.

"And this old world~
Is a new world~
And a bold world~
For me~
For me"

She began to sway slightly, getting more and more confident.

"Stars when you shine
You know how I feel
Scent of the pine~
You know how I feel~
Oh freedom is mine~
And I know how I feel~"

She swept her hair behind her ears, continuing to sing.

"It's a new dawn~
It's a new day~
It's a new life"

The song was nearly coming to the end, hopefully Anatole knew.

"It's a new dawn
It's a new day
It's a new life"

She closed her eyes, begging to anticipated the end of the song.

"It's a new dawn
It's a new day~
It's a new life~
It's a new life
For me
And I'm feeling good~"

She took a deep breath, getting ready for the big finale.

"I'm feeling good
I feel so good
I feel so good~"

She finally finished the song, spinning around in circle with her arms out as she giggled. She did not care if Anatole was there or not, she was finally having fun. Her parents would probably be proud of her for doing this.

”Bum, ba-bum, ba-bum…” His head nodded along as she hit the pitches reluctantly, gorgeous runs spilling out and she never had to try. Marissa never sounded like she had to put effort in to hit a note, but yet she put so much effort into saying nothing always. She was a confusing subject to discuss, and Anatole was sworn to get to the bottom of her enigma.

He nodded his head with the beat as she swayed, a smile forming when she said the words with such expression. The truth is, Anatole didn’t know how she felt, despite what the song said. That was what happened with being secretive, he knew nothing about her, and it only left him wanting more.

”Stars when you shine!”

”Yes, YES!” Anatole whacked the keys, this time a little harder to serve as emphasis for her glorious sound. Apparently he had thought out loud, he was so happy.

As the song progressed, he could see her eyes almost grin themselves. Anatole was grinning as well;they played through the climax like they had practiced together all the time.

“And I’m feeling good…” Like the other instance, she sang the last note with jazzy power and intensity, the same ones he had heard on the recordings. It was perfect, she was amazing, flawless.


Anatole hit the last chord, standing up and looking right into her shaky pupils. ”Oh my God...that was...” A smile formed on his small face, “AWESOME! No kidding, we should do that again! That was straight EPIC!”

He ran to her, his face flushed red with excitement and joy. “I hope you felt comfortable, and you’re actually feeling good!”

All he could hope is that Claryssa never heard about this.

Marissa continued to spin around with eyes closed, smiling like an idiot. She zoned out as she spun around, thinking what it would be like to be confident like that all the time. All she would feel was the slight breeze hitting her cheeks, normally she would have shivered away but this time she did not care one bit. Marissa had finally sung in front of another person. She found it slightly weird how she did it in front of basically a stranger. But Anatole was no longer a stranger, she hoped that maybe they could become friends. But then again, him and Rosie were quite close and Rosie may not like it that they were friends.

Finally she snapped out of her daze and realised that Anatole was cheering. She veered to a stop, placing her hands into her robe pockets and smiling nervously to Anatole. Her cheeks flared red as she try to avoid eye contact, looking down to the floor in embarrassment. She went even more embarrassed as he praised on how much of a good singer she was. This was something Marissa was never used to. Anatole was also flushed red, but probably out of excitement whereas Mari was embarrassed and scared. She slowly looked up to Anatole and rubbed the back of her neck awkwardly.

He wasn't in the mood to clap, afraid it would scare her off like some frightened animal. The applause was replaced with his gaping jaw, still in awe that the mute girl was able to survive that elegant song, singing through it all.

"No, that was great. Trust me." Why couldn't she just accept it, and acknowledge his compliment?

Oh, that's right, she was normally silent. Forgot about that.

"But seriously. We should do that again sometime. It's been so long since I've played." This was one of the few girls Anatole didn't know how to comfort. She was like talking to a wall sometimes, well, a sensitive wall. Was there a way he could get out of this situation? He needed to check on the other two, Rosie and Aubren, where they had gone without him.

But for now, he had to savor the moment. He had done it, he had survived the closest to a conversation with Marissa North he could. Through song.

His gut screamed at him. It would be impossible for her to call back, requesting another ballad or even for him to play her some chords. He wished to leave, but it would be rude.

What would a prince do...?

"You know what, Marissa? That was fun and all, but I think I have to leave." Burning, his gut was burning. He didn't like having to lie to her, but he had been in here all too long and wanted to escape back into the social world. "Someone's waiting for me at lunch. It was really fun though!"

Not wanting to observe her reaction, he left, his robe trailing behind him as he sprinted out of the room, relieved, but nauseous at the same time.

Anatole exits.