The Silent Melody

Prologue- Silent Beginnings

16 years ago

3rd Person P.O.V:

In New York City there lived a man and his wife. Married three years. A daughter age two. She never makes a sound. He and his wife have taken her to ever specialist that they can. The doctors can't seem to find out what's wrong. She doesn't make a sound when she cries. You just see the tears rolling down her face. Baby monitors are lost for them. Even though they have a silent babe, all they do is lay in bed worrying about her.

"Your daughter is mute, her vocal cords are missing." The last specialist they came to told them. "She'll never be able to speak."

"There has to be something." The husband demands. His wife sits next to him cradling the silent baby crying. Her soft sobs the only sound in the office for a while.

"I'm sorry Ma'am," The doctor says, "All I can do for you is offer you the names of schools that will teach your daughter how to speak using ASL and you both to learn to understand her."

"We'll do it." The husband says, "I'll do anything for my little girl."

"I can't do this Jim." His wife says, "I can't live with her not being able to ever say my name." The wife stands and hands over the little baby girl. "I'm sorry." She walks out of the room.

"Jane," Her husband calls after her standing, "Doctor, I'll take that list of schools." He writes down his email address before racing after his wife, his daughter still held tightly in his arms. He wasn't letting go.

~~

10 years later:

Jim and Rosalyn had moved away leaving Jane with the house. They spent years learning ASL and both were now fluent in the language. As soon as she's ready he's going to let her go to the public school. It was time to let her fly on her own. They just purchased a new house not far from the best school in the county and their beloved church that welcomed his daughter and him as they were. He doesn't mind the strange looks he gets when he talks to his daughter in public. And he can tell she doesn't mind. Her friends at Edge-Wood Baptist like a second family, all picking up slowly on the language in which she's fluent. She teaches them willingly, and they learn with an open mind.

"Ross," Her father calls up to her, her footsteps are the only signal he has that she heard him. She races into the living room.

"Hi Daddy." She signs to him, "What's going on?" She asks him.

"I just got a call, our new neighbors invited us over for dinner." He explains. He looks at her waiting for her response.

"What time to I have to be ready by?" She asks her head tilting to the left as she waits for a reply.

"An hour."

"OK." She signs the simple letters with a smile before hugging him and racing upstairs.

~~

Dinner:

"Hey Jim, this is my wife Kim, our daughter Lindsey, and our son Trevor."

"John," Rosalyn's father shakes the mans hand, "It's nice to meet you all." He gives a nod to all the family, "This is my daughter Rosalyn."

"That's such a beautiful name." Kim says smiling.

"Thank you, it's nice to meet you all." Rosalyn signs to the new family with a bright smile. Trevor looks intrigued by the new language.

"ARE YOU DEAF?" Lindsey yells.

"No, I'm mute, and you don't need to yell." Rosalyn signs to her, her father her translator for the night interprets. "Yelling hurts my ears."

"Dinners waiting in the other room, can I take your coats?" Kim asks.

She shrugs out of her pea coat. "How long have you known ASL?" Trevor asks her, "Can you teach me?"

"My whole life; yes I'd love to teach you." Rosalyn signs with a grin. Trevor and Rosalyn talk the whole way to the dinning room and then she had to stop so she could eat. "Miss Kim, the food is delicious." She signs with a smile. "My father can't cook to save his life." She grins to her father.

"Rosalyn says the food is delicious, and I'm inclined to agree with her." Her father translates as she continues to eat the wonderful meal. He doesn't mention the latter part.

"Where's your restroom?" Rosalyn signs.

After another translation from her father she's following Lindsey to the bathroom. "Just yell if you need anything. I mean, just come get us." Lindsey shuffles away awkwardly leaving Rosalyn to laugh silently to herself.

Rosalyn finds her way back to the dinning hall following the sound of the dining conversation. She pauses when she hears Lindsey talking about her.

"She's so weird. How do you know she's not faking the silence?" Lindsey asks.

"She's been that way since birth. She's never made a sound. it's almost impossible for a baby to stay quiet that long." Her father says, "She's not weird, she's just a normal girl."

"I don't want to play with her. I might get sick."

"I think it's cool." Trevor says.

Rosalyn walks back into the dining room pretending not to have heard a thing. She and Trevor talk late into the night, using paper and pencil to communicate since her father was talking to the adults. Lindsey, true to her word stayed clear of Rosalyn.

That night when they walked back to their house Rosalyn confessed that she had heard everything.