Sounds of Silence

Today's post is going to be different than all the previous ones.

As I was rummaging through my documents, I found one short story that I had written a few years ago on a whim and had forgotten about it. No one has read this stroy of mine so I wanted to post it as it is now, no editing at all. Even though I reallt wanted to change some formats of the layout itself, I left it all untouched. You be the judge and please leave comments of your thoughts.

Sounds of Silence

A short story by Maha AlNasser

“Thus happiness depends, as Nature shows, less on exterior things than most suppose.” As were the words of William Cowper, a saying one exceptional girl implemented with all her heart and soul. This is a legend that has been passed around for many generations. Dear reader, you should know from the start that this will not be a happy story. It is merely an attempt at grasping the beauty of life. This is the legend of one Lily Belle Lemont.

It had been said that there was once a girl named Lily Belle Lemont who lived in the heart of France. Lily Belle was born a beautiful child with electrifying wide green eyes, wavy chestnut hair and rosy cheeks. She was her parents’ only daughter aside from her older twin brothers, Émile and Julian. Her father worked as a talented painter that sold his art to the rich people of Paris while her brothers helped by working as chimney cleaners and her mother and her stayed home and took care of all the domestic work. It might seem as a normal family but ever since Lily Belle was younger, the children of their town thought she really was a fairy. She loved that they thought that about her. She would always ask her father why he had named her after a fairy even though she had already memorized the story by heart but her father would smile and say “mon chéri, are you not tired of that story?” she would sit up straight and say “Never!” Her father would kiss her head before telling his story. “Lily Belle was a fairy that lived in the meadows and brought joy and brightness to the wilderness. Her green wings made her look like a beautiful butterfly as were her eyes. When I first held you in my hands,” he put his arms together to imitate holding a baby and looked down. “And first saw your radiating beauty and your green eyes I said ‘well! This is clearly a gift from Lily Belle!’ so your mother and I named you after her”

Lily Belle loved life and everything about it. She would go to the fields and just sit there, admiring the work of God. She would close her eyes and listen to the winds singing to her, the trees dancing around her to a never-ending symphony while she was conducting. What was truly amazing is that she really did hear music being played around her. Even birds would stand near by and sing along. When she moved, tree branches and grass would move with her in the same direction. In the spring, she could hear the blossoming flowers harmonizing together in a chorus of sweet language that she could not understand but she would embrace the mesmerizing feeling that it brought along with so many different scents, like each flower had its own personality. She loved lilies the most, not just because it was part of her name but also because she had always thought lilies had the most unique existence. She planted some flowers when she was younger and the whole garden would prosper with the most radiant colors of all the gardens in all of France. Even during winter, her flowers would fight the soreness of the bitter cold weather and one could find traces of surviving soldiers among the blanket of white snow. No one knew how it happens, not even Lily Belle herself.

By the time she was old enough to marry, there was not a man who claimed her as his bride and had asked her hand in marriage. But she would always decline saying she had to care for her sick father as her mother is already old and cannot do it alone. Both her twin brothers had joined the army and were away on duty.

The wind was as delightful as it had ever been in the near by field. The weather was getting a bit colder as autumn approached but the blazing horizon made Lily Belle feel like she was sitting near a fireplace. She lay on the ground and closed her eyes, a beautiful piano piece being played in the background. Lily Belle smiled as the passing breeze caressed her cheeks and blew her hair away from her face.

“You’ll fall ill, you know?”

Lily Belle flinched and quickly sat up, anxiously looking around for the source of that voice. She realized how dark it was. The stars had already showed them selves, shining brightly, sprinkled on a huge canvas of dark blue. The full moon was spreading enough silvery light for her to distinguish the shadows of things around her but she could not see who it was. She hesitated then said, “Who’s there?” Then she saw him. A tall figure stood on a nearby rock. She could see the man’s hair being blown around by the wind.

“Who are you?” she asked in curiosity.

“Etienne Jolie Debree. And you must be Lily Belle Lemont. I’ve heard about you. There can’t be any other human being with the same description.” He said as he walked into the light. He had a smile on his face that made the moonlight unnecessary. His jet-black hair gleamed in the night. What blew Lily Belle’s breath away was his pure existence at where he stood. She felt her heart beating faster for a man she had just met. Magic. It began before either of them knew it. Little did they know what pain awaited them. What darkness lurked at the end of the curb, ready to swallow them whole into its pit of everlasting agony. Especially since only one of them would have to feel it all.

Weeks later, Lily Belle and Etienne were the talk of the whole town. Everyone knew about it and there were nearly a hundred men who were so jealous of Etienne that they would challenge him, day after day in attempts at getting Lily Belle as a reward. But Etienne always won. As days went by, Lily Belle could no longer remember a world where Etienne did not exist in her life. He became her every thought, every breath, every molecule of her being. Her masterpiece of a garden became more vibrant day by day as she felt more and more alive. The couple spent their every second together, planning their future. What Lily Belle loved most about Etienne was that he never saw her as a freak of nature. He accepted all the magical things that occurred wherever she would be. “I want to show you something.” She said one day on one of their picnics. She held his hand and started swaying with the wind, her eyes closed. At first, Etienne did not understand what was going on. Little by little, he noticed how their surroundings were dancing along with his beloved. “Can you hear it?” She asked. Etienne frowned at her question. The only sound he was hearing was the sound of the wind, whistling in his ears.

“What are we listening to, Mon amore?” he asked, giving up on the case.

“Shhh... Listen.”

Etienne sighed, brushed his fingers through his hair and closed his eyes. He concentrated all his thoughts on the gentle hand holding his and on the pulsing ground beneath his feet. It was like someone unclogged his ears. Music suddenly burst from all around him. He flinched at the sudden sound and opened his eyes. His heart beat faster and he stared blankly at Lily Belle. She opened her eyes and smiled. Her soft smile reassured him and he smiled back. The music became clearer as time passed by as he started to notice how the flowers, the wind and the trees danced together. The early stars twinkled and bounced together with every piano note. Etienne’s world became more immersed in Lily Belle’s magic. He looked at the woman standing next to him, his reason to continue living. He squeezed her hand.

“Be my wife.”

Hours turned into days. Days turned into months. Then it came. The day Lily Belle dreamed of for so long, the day she would become Etienne’s wife. There they stood, waiting to finally become husband and wife, Lily Belle in a beautiful white wedding dress, streaked with green stitching to match her eyes. Etienne was wearing a simple ensemble but his form made it look glamorous and elegant.

A man suddenly burst through the doors, shouting “Etienne! Run!” it was Etienne’s best friend, Sabastien. He looked horror struck and his shirt was blotched in blood. “It’s Théo! He says you have stolen Lily Belle away from him! He’s coming to kill you!”

Etienne did not have time to react when Théo came running at him. Etienne was so shocked that he could not move. Théo pierced his knife into the other man’s body. Etienne fell to the ground, blood flowing from him. Sabastien’s shout of rage could be heard in the background, as Lily Belle fell next to her be wedded husband, tears streaking down her face, her eyes blank from emotion. ‘Oh darling...’ she wanted to say, but her voice had abandoned her. She held his face in her hands as he tried to gasp for breath. “You’ll be fine.” She said between sobs. “Sabastien will fetch a doctor.. You’ll be fine.” Etienne smiled up at her, despite the seething pain he was feeling.

“I wont be fine... I’m dying,..” he croaked.

Lily Belle shook her head as more tears plummeted from her sad green eyes. “Don’t say that!” she said, pressing her hand against his wound in an attempt to stop the bleeding.

“Mon amore…” Whispered Etienne. He put his bloody hand against Lily Belle’s wet cheek to grab her attention. She looked into his eyes and held his trembling hand. There was silence for a few moments before Etienne gathered strength to speak again.

“...Happy Birthday.”

Etienne went limb. His eyes were stripped of all existence. The color left his fare complexion. It was like Lily Belle was watching his soul leave his body. The saddest wail was heard that day, in the small town of Paris.

The loss of Etienne had left Lily Belle broken. She woke up two day after that horrible after noon, hoping it was all just a nightmare. But the tracks that tears had etched on her face assured her otherwise. It took her a few minutes to realize something very unusual. It was morning but not a single sound could be heard out of her window. No singing birds, no wailing winds, no people moving about in their business. She ran to the window and looked out. Not a single soul could be seen walking on the streets. Lily Belle felt panic crawl to her heart. She ran around the house, searching for anyone but with no avail. She walked out on the street but found no one. The town looked grey and dull. She walked to her garden and found that all her flowers had withered. What was going on? The world was in mourning.

“Painful, no?” Said a man who was suddenly next to her. He wore a black suit and had a dark complexion.

“What’s going on? Who are you? Where is everyone? Why can’t I hear anything?” bellowed Lily Belle.

“One question at a time, dear.” Said the man. “You can hear me so you have not gone deaf. As for your other questions, I can only say this: your sadness drove all the sounds and people away.”

Lily Belle could not comprehend what this man was saying. “It cannot be…” She said as she walked through the streets, looking for any clue that would prove him wrong.

“But it can.” He said with a smile. “You must search for the happiness you used to possess. You must let go. Live on.”

“I cannot live without him…” Lily Belle heard herself saying. She did not realize that tears found their way to her eyes again. She covered her face with her hands. ‘He’s right.’ Her inner voice told her but she refused to listen. “How do I fix this?” She asked.

“It’s simple!” the man answered. “Be happy again!”

Easier said than done. How can she become happy again if the most important person to her had died and left her alone? Lily Belle found herself standing in the field she always visited with Etienne. She looked around and saw small globes of light being emitted from the ground and traveling up towards the sky, fading between the grey clouds.

“Happiness.” The man in the black suit answered her unasked question. “Those are droplets of your happiness. This means you have a choice.” He stopped talking to see if she understood what he had said.

“Go on.” She said, her eyes following the globes of light.

“You either force happiness back into your heart or…”

“Or?”

“Or you can follow him.”

Lily Belle turned to look at the man in shock but he was no longer there. What did he mean? She sat on the ground and closed her eyes. Can she really follow Etienne? The mere thought brought butterflies back in her stomach and she felt a small smile crack on her lips. She suddenly heard faded music.

Pachelbel’s Cannon in D major.

Lily Belle knew what she had to do. She got up and headed toward the tree Etienne loved to climb. She could smell his scent in the air and the wind came back to lift her spirits again. The music became louder the more she thought of him. She looked up at the sky and her will to follow Etienne and be with him again became stronger. That moment Lily Belle started shimmering. She turned into small green dots of light, glinting in the grayness of the world. The shimmering green light faded and Lily Belle was never seen again.

Such was the legend of one Lily Belle Lemont.

Fin