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"Of course. Let's get you set up."
For the next few hours, Cisco taught her how to shoot a rifle. It would take Noelle some time to fully understand the core of the lesson, but she was more at peace with herself than she'd ever been.
More than anything, she could feel a glimmer of hope taking shape inside of her.
It was dark by the time they returned to the lodge.
Yu had already made dinner, and upon seeing Noelle so flushed with exertion and glowing with happiness, he inquired how everything had gone.
"Awesome," she jumped up and down. "Cisco taught me how to shoot, and I loved it," she declared loudly.
The disparity between the quiet little girl who'd walked out of the lodge and the one who returned was astounding. Noelle displayed more excitement than anyone had ever seen of her.
Famished from all the effort, Noelle sat down at the table, eating with gusto as she recounted everything they had been up to.
Yu, having prior knowledge of Cisco's plan, merely turned to him, giving him a soft smile. Reaching for his hand under the table, Yu mouthedwell done.
Cisco merely smiled, squeezing Yu's hand.
That day at the hunting lodge was the first to come in Noelle's journey of self-discovery.
But Cisco had yet to teach her the most important lesson.
Sometimes, it didn't matter who, or what you were.
Life still found ways to fuck you over.
5Noelle
AGE FIFTEEN
Noelle hummed a quiet melody as she checked the time on her watch.
Two o’clock.
The piano room was all hers.
The corners of her lips tipped up in a satisfied smile as she opened the door, locking it behind her and taking a deep breath.
Few things brought her joy—true joy—but the piano was one. It was the only place where she could be herself, where she could lose herself among the myriad of notes and experience every emotion to the fullest.
She’d recently entered high school and her mother had allowed her to enroll in a special art school that allowed students to tailor their curriculum based on their strengths and interests.
Though she still had basic subjects like English and Algebra, the focus of her education was music—history, theory, composition. More than seventy percent of her time was spent focusing on music. And she’d never been happier.
More than anything, she was also allowed to conduct her studies independently, and for a few hours each day she was given exclusive access to one of the piano rooms so she could compose and practice at leisure. No longer did she have to walk on pins and needles for fear her conflict with her teachers would interfere with her passion.
Even her relationship with her classmates had changed. The school was so focused on excellence thatmostpeople minded their business, pursuing their own goals. That in itself had allowed Noelle to relax for the first time in her life and spend her time at school without the usual unfortunate incidents.
That wasn’t to say that Noelle got along with people, or that people took to her. True to her nature, she preferred her solitude and had yet to make any friends. And though over time she’d curbed some of her wilder behavior, thanks to Cisco’s advice and mentorship, she'd long given up the desire to create relationships.
She admitted she'd grown increasingly more cynical as the years passed, and that despite her continuous efforts to make herself likable to people, it never worked. So she'd just abandoned the idea.
If people didn't want her, why should she want them?
She was entirely more comfortable to be alone with her music. On her own. Always on her own.
Besides, though her reputation at this school wasn't as bad as before and people didn't go out of their way to pick on her, they still side-eyed her. She supposed it was because of her appearance and the fact that she stood out, once more, as different.
