Little Shy Ariel (ft. Harry Styles)

Chapter 11 - Talents

Chapter 11 - Talents

As I walk towards the centre at night I keep singing to myself, just to keep my mind off of things for a while. I sing Yours Truly by Paradise Fears because that’s probably my favourite song by them. It’s a beautiful song and playing it on the piano always gives me this amazing feeling and I just close my eyes and imagine things beings so different. I picture myself on a stage, all black with just a spotlight on the piano I’m playing, I can’t even see the crowd, but I play and sing with all the passion that songs awaken in me.

So singing as I walk, imagining this helps me quite a lot not to think of anything else but music.

By when I’m in the centre I’ve sung the song a few times and I’ve even made a mash up with other songs with a similar base. And I’m all right until I set foot in the centre, seeing all the people there. Although it’s past ten and that part of the complex is never crowded, I still see some people. No one pays attention to me, though, just a girl walking by the wall, almost as if I could turn into the paint covering the walls. A girl walking with her eyes locked on her feet, with my red hair falling around my face like a waterfall, hiding me from the rest. I hug myself, my arms tightly wrapped around my own waist in a defensive posture. I don’t honestly think they’ll harm me, why would they do that? Still, my body reacts like that and my anxiety kicks in, making my heart race as I know people are passing by.

I try to hurry to the music room but I don’t know why, today there are more people around than usual. Not guests but other employees, going from one place to another and I wonder if there’s something going on.

I see the big door to the music room and I plan to run towards it but I hear someone laughing and I don’t know why, but that makes me stop. I press myself against the wall as if I could be part of it and I even hold my breath as I look around, looking for the source of that laughter. I don’t know why I can’t ignore this and my heart is racing even faster as I keep watching, until I find them.

Harry and Niall, both coming with robes and wet hair, probably from the pool, laughing out loud. In fact, it looks like Niall is kind of dying and I wonder if I should worry about his wellbeing, but if Harry doesn’t seem concerned, then the blond one must be all right.

They walk past me, like I’m not standing there, ignoring me like everyone else does and for the first time I mind. Probably because it’s Harry, because I’ve wanted to talk to him all this time and he’s gone after me to the lake, but when I’m here, when I’m in his kingdom —kind of— he doesn’t see me. And my eyes are locked on him, following him until he disappears. Only then I sigh deeply, defeated, I even feel like I shrunk and I’m smaller than what I already am.

“Hey Harry,” I whisper closing my eyes. That’s what I should’ve said when he was passing by, I should’ve called his name and greet him, tell him sorry for not answering before and that I’m not mute. But of course, I didn’t do that.

I shake my head and sigh once again, just to tear myself apart from the wall and finally make my way to the music room. It’s actually pointless to stay here, dwelling on something I didn’t do. The past can’t be changed, after all.

I close the doors behind me with another deep breath and instead of immediately starting cleaning I grab one of the guitar and start playing any song that comes to my mind. I find myself playing Falling Slowly and that song puts me at ease. I love that song, I love the musical Once, it’s so amazing and all the songs are plain incredible. Falling Slowly is probably one of the best songs in existence; I just love it.

After I finish it, I put the guitar aside and go to the wardrobe to start cleaning and making sure all the instruments are properly tuned. Soon I can’t think of anything else but the instruments and as I take care of each one, as I caress each one in my mind I see myself playing them, making music.