A New Cullen Sister

Chapter 55

"Hey guys! Mia's back!" called one of the orchestra members, spying Amelia as she entered the high school auditorium with Blythe on Sunday. Her friends crowded around her, delighted to have their friend back. Carlisle and Esme walked in to the auditorium after Amelia and went to sit near the back of the hall.

"Hey everyone," smiled Amelia, in good spirits because she could once again do the thing she loved the most – play her violin with her friends. True to her word, she was wearing a Vogmask to prevent herself from inhaling any airborne pathogens that might give her another infection. Alice had gone the whole hog and ordered several of them to coordinate with her outfits. The beauty of them was that they came in a wide range of colours and styles, and would provide protection from all things airborne, including pollution, better than a standard surgical mask could. Today's mask had a cute purple floral design on it, matching the purple sweater she was wearing.

"It's good to have you back, Amelia," said Ms Monteverdi, ushering everyone into their seats and giving Amelia a quick hug, "even if it is just for a little while."

"It sure is good to be back," stated Amelia. On Friday morning, she had had a chat with her parents and Dr Westsmythe. That talk had later transpired into a meeting between her parents, Principal Greene and her teachers. In short, she was going to study via correspondence, going in only to write tests and submit assignments. Esme would take over her education based on the work she was doing in class so that she could finish off her sophomore year. It was hoped that she would be well enough to write exams, and her teachers were willing to push her final exams forward and she write sooner than her classmates if needed.

Carlisle and Esme were hoping that it would not come to that, as they did want Amelia to remain human for as long as possible. It was a slippery slope of highs and lows, but Amelia was stubborn and determined to drag out her human life as long as possible. Rosalie and Emmett were backing her up, even Esme and Carlisle had agreed even although it would be difficult to watch her suffer through the end stages of her disease.

"Alright guys, I want to start with the Firework Music Overture, seeing that it's the piece that everyone is the least familiar with. Then we will move onto the La Réjouissance movement," stated Ms Monteverdi, calling everyone to order, "Gabriella, could you play an A for us?"

The familiar sound of the oboe playing the A note filled the hall, and Gabriella quickly tuned her oboe to the correct pitch, before the rest of the orchestra tuned their instruments while she played the same note over and over. At Ms Monteverdi's signal, they started to play, albeit a little shakily at first. Amelia was the only one who had missed the week's practices, but she caught on quickly and managed to keep up with the others.

About five minutes into the piece, she started coughing. She struggled to stop it from interfering with her playing, but she eventually stopped and slumped against the chair, trying to take deep breaths. She stood up and put her violin on her chair, before grabbing her concentrator and moving away from the orchestra. Ms Monteverdi caught her eye and raised an eyebrow, miming the words 'are you ok?' Amelia flashed a thumb up gesture as she walked away. Carlisle and Esme hurried to her as she doubled over, struggling with a particularly violent spasm. Carlisle removed the Vogmask and handed her some tissues, smacking her back to help dislodge the phlegm. When it was over, her cheeks were bright red.

"Are you alright?" queried Esme, placing an icy hand on Amelia's cheek.

"Yes I am," she said as she exhaled heavily, "I'm going to head back and finish the piece."

She walked back to her seat and picked up her violin, easily picking up where they were and continuing playing like nothing had happened. Carlisle and Esme made their way back to their seats and continued to observe the orchestra practice, keeping a close eye on their human child, who sat behind the principle violinist in violin I and was totally immersed in her music.