Wallflower

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Chapter 11: Mieux qu'un Biscuit aux Pépites de Chocolat

"Come on," Alex said softly, twisting the doorknob. She stepped in before Avery, prompting the shorter girl to follow her inside. The sight that she laid her eyes on evoked a small gasp from her. For some reason, Alex had another room inside her room and the thought made Avery's head hurt.

"I've never brought anyone in here, to be honest," Alex said sheepishly, rubbing the back of her neck.

  Avery very much preferred this room to the one she was in before. The walls were painted forest green and seemed to be filled with more interesting objects and decorations. There was a black, grand piano in the corner of the room and perched against the wall next to it was a guitar case. As she slowly walked around the room, observing her surroundings, she let her fingers run over the lid of the piano; she never would have pegged Alex as a musician.

   The wall opposite to her was lined with a few stickers of black music notes blending in so perfectly that it looked like they were painted on. There were Polaroid pictures hung up on a single string of lights that hung from the ceiling on that same wall; they held the images of cities around the world, from Paris to Budapest.

"It's gorgeous in here," Avery breathed. There was a smaller bed in the room and above it hung a couple of posters of legendary musicians including Stevie Wonder and Frank Sinatra. The bed looked extremely comfortable with its fluffed up black comforter and bounteous white pillows. There was a simple, matte black bookshelf that sat next to it which held many books that caught Avery's attention.

She walked over to the bookshelf and sat on the edge of the bed, Alex following her actions. Avery plucked a classic book from the row, 'To Kill A Mockingbird' by Harper Lee, and flipped through the crisp pages.

"Satisfied?" Alex asked, a little nervous.

"Very," Avery responded with a smile as she looked down at the book in her hands.

"I'm glad." Alex let out a breath she didn't even know she was holding. The opposite happened for Avery though, as Alex gently took her hand out of the blue. The brunette stood up from the bed, causing Avery to do the same after returning the book to its position on the bookshelf.

Alex led her to the stunning piano and the two sat on the piano bench. A small paper that was on the wall next to the large instrument caught Avery's attention. It was a certificate for a competition that Alex had won and Avery smiled at how it was hung proudly, now knowing that music was something very important to Alex.

"Alexia Rivers?" Avery asked, reading the name that was printed in bold letters.

Alex scoffed and reached over to turn the certificate over. "Alex Rivers," she corrected the freckled girl.

Avery shook her head. "Alexia," she tried it out, "I like it."

The sound of Alex's full name on Avery's tongue brought a small blush to the brunette's cheeks. She chose not to comment and instead placed her hands on the keys of the piano. Avery observed as the taller girl took a deep breath in and started to play. She noticed how Alex's lips parted slightly in concentration as her fingers gently stroked the keys, creating a beautiful melody. Avery closed her eyes, taking in the music, only to open them again in surprise when a smooth voice started to sing.

Cold bones

Yeah, that's my love

She hides away, like a ghost

Oh, does she know that we bleed the same?

Oh, don't wanna cry but I break that way