Background Noise [HS]

SIX

Now prepared and dressed for bed, Violet flopped down onto her mattress with a sigh. Torn between the urge to scream into the plush pillows and have the piece of furniture to swallow her whole, save her from the embarrassment that occurred just seconds ago downstairs, she fisted the sheets in her fingers and shut her eyes. It took an immeasurable amount of time for her heart to slow enough for sleep to come, for it raced a mile a minute as she replayed every word she said in her head. The reminiscing troubled her mind, left her restless.

Harry wouldn't remember, anyway.

Violet should have known this, for he was practically too drunken to even speak properly. A few words would do little to brand themselves in the haze fogging his thoughts. Never mind how rushed and shaken they were, spoken to him between the hitching of breath. This was something Violet needed to work on—speaking to strangers, opening up. Families thought her relationship status to be a mystery, for they couldn't understand why no one had taken a liking to the young, kind girl.

She had such a big heart, so why had no one seized it?

In high school, boys thought her to be pretty. They also saw a lot of other girls as being beautiful, and this made things difficult. The shy and stutter-prone Violet didn't stand a chance. They wanted girls with unwavering confidence, something she lacked. The mere locking of eyes with another would provoke the fumbling of words from her mouth, a loss of her train of thought. She was smart, educated. It shouldn't have been so difficult to share answers to classwork or help with problems, but it was.

Finding a job proved challenging. Encouraged by her parents, Violet applied to several places. This will be a way to break out of your shell, they told her. She fought the pressure at first, for a chicken doesn't hatch by force, but when it's ready and fully developed. The analogy was silly but fit the situation quite well. Parents unrelenting, pressure growing, Violet had no choice but to give in. Her interviews went much of the same way her daily interactions did. This made landing a job incredibly trying, but she pulled through in the end.

As it turns out, you don't need impeccable social skills to stock and organize the shelves of a music store.

It was a good fit for Violet. Too clumsy and anxiety-ridden to work fast food, the peaceful atmosphere suited her well. During her teenage years, she learned of her preference to have something to listen to while she worked. Music to keep her company—voices, sounds. She liked various genres of music, though the solemn, mellow songs suited her well. The soothing tones would calm her as they echoed off the walls of her room. It was then that she would distract herself from her problems to focus on the meaningful lyrics.

Background noise, if you will.

It proved to both heal and harm, for listening was bliss, distraction ignorance. Sometimes she would lock herself away for hours and just listen to music. Put off her responsibilities, lose herself in a melodic wonderland. Her parents worried for months, though that's all they did since the divorce. Worried about their only child, how she was coping with the trauma brought on by lies and betrayal. Perhaps the latter was to be expected from others, but never your family.

Family was supposed to be forever.

Downstairs, a curious pad of finger wiped a line of dust away from a photo frame. Trapped there behind the glass, a frozen memory of a young Violet and her father. A curious and intent green gaze studied the pair. Flickered from frame to frame, wondered why the images shared a vintage-like quality about them. None of the photos were recent, that much was evident. Harry was simply sauntering off to shut off the lights when he happened upon them. Inquisitive, something possessed him to draw closer.