Changing Tune

34. Secret

Chapter 34: Secret

Ellie's POV

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I sat in awe as the children performed one after another. I could not remember the last time I had smiled as much as I had that night. They were so excited and so enthusiastic that it was hard not to fall in love with them. Some of them performed plays, whilst others sang songs, some which they had written themselves.

They were more talented than I could have ever imagined them to be, and even if they were far from perfect, they could do great things. I was glad that they encouraged them to do something art related in the orphanage. Just because they were not lucky enough to have parents did not mean that they could not be lucky enough to find something they truly loved to do.

The one person that truly struck me, though, was Bella. She had an angelic voice, and I could not help but be mesmerised of her. Her eyes shone brighter with every word she sang, and the smile on her face etched on my mind. She reminded me a lot of a younger me, and I could not help my eyes from getting glued to her.

Her words kept ringing in my mind, and I could not believe that I had inspired such a talented little girl. It was crazy to believe that she was only five years old, and yet had the talent and maturity of somebody much older.

I was lucky. I had grown up with brothers that loved music. They inspired me, and everything that I had achieved till then was all thanks to the both of them. Bella didn't have that. She did not have older brothers that could help her and guide her, but she had a community that was teaching her to experiment and figure out her talents. That was why it meant so much to me when she told me that I was her inspiration. The thought of being to her what my brothers were to me was something that I still could not believe. It gave me immense joy to think about, and I found myself that she wasn't the only person I had impacted in that manner.

"Are you okay?" Blake whispered, his eyes glued on me.

I looked at him, realising that I was smiling like a dork. I did not know what trance I had found myself in, but for a moment I had lost touch with all of reality.

"Yeah, I'm fine," I nodded, turning back to look at Bella, who was still singing her heart out.

My heart tightened as she looked at me with a smile. I could not understand the connection which I seemed to have with Bella. I found myself wanting to know more about her and learn her story. She had told me that I was her inspiration, but ever since she said that, she became mine. She, much like others like her, became my motivation to keep working hard. I was doubting so many things before Blake brought me to the orphanage, all of which suddenly seemed foolish after one chat with a five year old girl. I was suddenly reassured that what I was doing was what I was meant to be doing, and I was not going to be walking away from it.

Seeing the children go up on their little makeshift stage and doing the things which clearly made them happy was an amazing sight to see. Ironically, I found myself envying them, and I felt terrible for that. They were orphans, and I certainly had no right to be jealous of them when they were going through so much, yet seeing them all up there, so happy and carefree, made me wish that I too could have that again.

I wanted to go back to a time where I could just be myself, doing what I wanted without fearing that I would be letting anybody down. The thought of lying to my parents crept up on me again suddenly, and I could not shake it off. I knew that they would be disappointed the minute they found out that I had kept this information away from them.

I felt terrible, but I also felt angry. They accepted both Noah and Ethan's dream, and yet they wanted me to be just like my sister Lara. Certainly, I was not Noah or Ethan, but I was also not Lara. I was Eliana, and I wanted them to accept that.