Arabella Mellenthin

Grade: 9

Laurel School

Instructor: Kate Webb

Obstacles of Illusion

Flash Fiction

Obstacles of Illusion

Breathless work, softly adding an accent every few notes, exploiting the cracks that have once been made. Veering the bow every strum that is going by. Fingers moving, motionful, like a person kept mute that has just begun to speak. The tranquility will always set in after a few minutes, allowing for the unspoken, serene acts to build up. Until it stops, the bow lifts off the strings, leaving a soft vibration to them as the song wafts away with a charmed feeling left behind. This is how it always feels when my brother plays, the pleasure and attentiveness that comes along with his playing. The finesse that is entailed with his cello career has been extensive. Ever since he has begun to play for the Royal Academy of Music, I have not been able to see him. When he comes back it's never as it used to be. He is different, older, wiser, exponentially changing in a beautiful way. He is more confident and emotional with his playing, truly advocating the music in ways that have never been seen by a male cellist, showing and telling with every movement. His touch electrifies me after his performance, adding more and more goosebumps. My parents are standing, watching, listening. Forcing the arches of their mouths upward. They are softly clapping as my brother glides over. An ingenuine hug was given to both of them, I could tell something was up. The undeclared fiddly argument put forward could be denuded at any time. The unspoken forgiveness was never going to make its way back around for this one as if a train departing from the station one last time. The way my brother acts around his friends is so different nowadays. The femininity that is added to each bounce off the ground is over the top, and unseemingly usual for my brother.

He is, as my parents would say, queer.

They are unallowing and unforgiving to themselves for this. I, for one, don't understand. He is still the same, kind, generous, and full-hearted. No one could tell until he played.