Questions swirled around my mind like an unruly sea. Waves of curiosity peaked and troughed. They all centred around one thought - Felix and the way he communicated.
I yearned for my own space and the clarity of thought that my solitude could provide. There was one place where I knew my thoughts would not be interrupted - the Olympic Peninsula peak.
This mountain range stood majestically adjacent to the abode in which we lived. In fact, a walking trail led right to the peak, where the forest below could be seen in all its beauty.Until last week, this peak had been inaccessible to me. The path that had led there was steep and carpeted in soft snow, fallen branches and treacherous rocks. As a wheelchair user, it had been impossible for me to access the summit.
Since a person with a disability had joined their coven, the Cullen's had become very attentive to accessibility. They wanted to make me as comfortable as possible and to make the world around me more fitted to my needs. As an acknowledgement of my disability, Emmett had constructed a ramp that allowed me access the peak of the Olympic Peninsula. A wooden boardwalk with a safety rail was added to the top.
I ventured confidently up the ramp and onto the boardwalk at the top of the mountain.
As I looked down at the snow dusted forest below, I began to reflect on the topic that was consuming every atom of my focus - Felix. Since meeting Felix on that fateful day in the library, I had collected a number of clues that led me to believe he was unable to speak. I had never heard him speak to anyone. Even in class, he wrote his answers down for the teacher.
I had discounted my initial impression of him - that he was rude. Felix had proven to be a kind and friendly person. I thought of sitting at the lunch table with him in companionable silence, his friendly countenance whenever we crossed paths and especially the beautiful card he had sent me for New Years.
My reflections led me to only one logical conclusion - Felix couldn't or for some reason wouldn't talk.
What does it all mean, I thought with apprehension. And what should I do about it?
Should I ask him? Or would that be rude? It's a pretty personal thing to ask someone if they are unable to talk and Felix might not be comfortable to discuss it. I decided to let Felix share his way of communicating with me when he was ready. In the meantime, I would be the best friend to Felix that I could possibly be.
That afternoon, I was weeding in the library. Weeding is the process of checking publication dates and removing books that are older than an agreed upon date. These books are then donated. I conducted this procedure alone, as Florence was visiting her sister in Brooklyn. The strains of Bach played in the background.
The sound of a bell ringing indicated the arrival of a patron to the library. I turned to see Felix walking towards me, an earnest expression on his handsome face. In his hand he gripped a notebook. With purpose, he tore a page from the top of the notebook and handed it to me.
Printed on the page were the words:
Ella, you are a true friend and as such I want to tell you something that I haven't told anyone else in this town - I want to tell you my story...
Soundtrack
While I was writing this chapter, I was listening to...
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