Zenith

We have reached the highest peak.

I hope you've all enjoyed the climb.

♪     ♪     ♪

There was a buzzing in her ears as she stared at her reflection.

Her curls done up, decorated with small flowers.

A dress made of tulle stretched perfectly across her lithe limbs.

The blue so pale it was nearly white.

Flaring out at her waist in a dramatic sweep.

Soft makeup, rosy cheeks.

Enid did not see herself.

The girl in the mirror was a replica, a modified sculpture of who she once was.

She had haunted eyes.

A knock at the door sounded.

"Angel, five minutes until we need to leave." Alexander's voice was muffled by the wood between them.

She steadied herself against the vanity.

Taking one final glance in the mirror, her eyes caught on her neck.

The thin chain with three golden hearts resting between her collarbones.

Her finger rose, brushing against the cold metal.

She hadn't taken it off since Alexander had latched the clasp.

It had become one of her most cherished possessions.

Like a physical reminder of their love.

For the first time it felt like a collar.

Her fingers fumbled as she frantically tried to get it off.

Finally, she caught the clasp and unlatched it.

Placing it gently on the vanity, she marveled at how foreign her bare neck looked.

Another knock came and she rose from the bench seat.

Opening the door, she found all three men staring back at her.

"Little bird, you look exquisite." Dante's voice was hushed in awe.

Alexander and Theodore echoed his thoughts.

"Perfect, darling." "Absolutely stunning."

Their expressions of unbridled wonder.

Her smile was small, but genuine.

A parched quality forming in her mouth as she took in their striking forms covered in tailored tuxedos.

Alexander's coat was lined with embroidery in the same pale blue of her dress.

They were every bit the gods that they were revered as.

"We've already loaded your cello into the car." Alex reached for her hand before retracting.

They had done a good job of respecting her request for space.

She had barely spoken to them since the night of their family meeting.

That night she had gone to sleep with the weavings of a plan beginning in her mind.

The next morning she had flown through her math exam, turning it in just before 8:45.

She had found Emilia in the hallway, tugged her into an empty classroom and locked the door.

Left her phones in her bag by the door as she pulled her friend into the corner and whispered instructions in her ear.

When she arrived to her history class for her last exam, it was like nothing had happened at all.

The immortals had worried over her, she could feel their eyes on her constantly as she hid in the library.

They tried to start conversations, tried to draw her out of the shell she had become.

Dante had baked her favorite desserts; Theodore had tried to entice her with a game of chess.

Each time she had shaken her head, feeling her own heartbreak as she saw the desperation in their eyes.

She was a ghost, haunting the halls of the estate.

"Are you excited, Enid?" Theodore's question startled her from her memories.

They were in the car, nearing the campus.

"Yes, I am. We are last, right?" She asked and Alexander nodded.

"Saved the best for last." Dante winked and her heart seared in her chest.

The parking lot in front of the school's auditorium was packed, glamorously dressed people migrating toward the large hall.

Stepping inside the historic building, she felt as though a friend had become a stranger.

Although she had practiced within these walls all semester, it was like an entirely new realm with the rows filled with an audience.

Alexander's hand pressed against her lower back and she turned toward him.

"We've got to head backstage." He whispered in her ear.

Theodore stepped forward and handed her the cello case he had been carrying for her.

"Break a leg, sweet girl. We have front row seats, so we'll be just a few feet away." His smile bright with pride.

"But don't actually break a leg, although then I could carry you everywhere..." Dante trailed off playfully.

The two stepped forward and wrapped her into a hug.

It was practically the first time they had touched her all week.

Her eyes burned as she sunk into their embrace, her throat tight.

Regret threatening to choke her.

It writhed inside her, withering her heart.

She tried to swallow it down.

"I love you." The words slipped out before she could stop them.

Desperation overriding her sense.

Their ribs contracted in surprise and they gripped her tighter.

Theodore's face lit up in the smile that was just for her.

Dante practically gaped at her, his eyes shiny with unshed tears and relief.

"Oh, darling, we love you. We'll see you after the show." Theodore's voice low with emotion.

Her heart shrunk again.

Enid managed to nod shakily, turning to follow Alexander.

She only glanced back once, watching as their tall silhouettes disappeared in the crowd.

Backstage was aflutter with performers.

Dancers in ornate costumes stretching, singers warming up with vocal exercises.

She and Alexander settled into two seats in a corner and she began to tune her cello.

Nerves trembling in her fingers as she listened to the soft roar of the crowd behind the curtains.

Dean Thomas walked past them, reading through flashcards as he approached the wings.

Something in her chest twisted as she watched him smirk at one of the girls in a ballet costume.

Like father like son.

"One minute! One minute till showtime!" A voice called and the dancers began a low chatter in excited tones.

She listened as the crowd hushed, watching as Dean Thomas walked up to a microphone at the center of the stage.

"Good evening! I am Dean Thomas and I would like to welcome you all to Pennington University's annual Winter Gala! We have an incredible night ahead..." Dean Thomas's voice boomed through the auditorium.

Enid zoned out as he continued his greeting, focusing on the strings beneath her fingers.

Time stretched in a bizarre warp as the show began.

She watched from the shadows as the ballerinas flew across the stage, each limb extended with utter grace.

Performances flew by, choir ensembles and orchestra symphonies.

Suddenly, it was time.

Dean Thomas took the stage once more.

Alexander offered her his hand and they rose, reaching the side of the stage.

"Our last act is one I know we all have been anticipating. Performing tonight is world-renowned musician Alexander Drewitt and his protégé, Enid McCarthy." His introduction was met with loud applause.

Alexander looked down at her, his honey eyes alight.

He turned, ready to step on stage, when she grabbed his hand.

"Alex- wait." She whispered; her voice frantic.

His eyebrows furrowed as he turned back to her, but she had wrapped him in a hug before he could question her.

Enid's eyes fluttered shut as she squeezed him, trying to memorize his scent and the feeling of his arms around her.

Trying to imprint him into her mind.

"Are you alright?" Alexander spoke into her curls.

No.

Nothing was alright.

"Yes, yes. Just- nervous." Her words stumbling as she tried to hold in tears.

A warm hand under her chin tipped her head back.

Her eyes met his.

"Pretend it's just us. Just you and me like it's been for months. This is our music hall, our domain. Just you and me and the music. The rest doesn't matter." He slid his hand down to lace with hers.

The pain that struck her in that moment nearly left her winded.

Enid buried it, her mind spinning as they stepped on stage.

The bright lights blinded her, so she kept her eyes on the seat that was designated for her.

A beautifully painted smile fabricating her face.

Her cello rested beside it.

She took a shaky breath as she sat, her eyes fluttering across the faces she could make out.

There, just to the left, were Dante and Theodore.

Soft smiles melting across the hard lines of their jaws.

The rest of the crowd loomed before her.

Enid inhaled slowly, focusing on the familiar pressure of her instrument between her legs.

Picking up her bow, she glanced at Alexander.

His arm rose, his violin in perfect position.

The piece they were to perform was one of the hardest she had ever played.

Alexander had told her it was often labeled the impossible duet.

Passacaglia.

She had practiced it for hours, over and over until her hand ached.

But nothing could prepare her for this.

Her heart beating against her chest like a trapped bird as she felt hundreds of eyes draw along her skin.

Alexander nodded at her, mouthing words.

Just us.

And then they began.

Drawing one long note out with her bow, Alexander began to draw his own across his violin.

The rest of the room fell away as she felt the vibrations sink into her bones.

Their music wove together as they began to pick up speed.

Usually she closed her eyes when she played, but not this time.

Her eyes were connected to his, fire and ice.

The notes wrapping around them both.

He was a god, commanding his violin as though he was born to do so.

Alexander stepped toward her; his face tight with concentration.

She bit her lip as she began to pluck, her fingers flying across the cords.

Slower, faster.

The song was a battle.

She poured all of it out into her playing.

The anger.

The sorrow.

The regret.

She took the fragmented shards of her heart and threw them at him.

Her hand aching as the bow pressed harder and harder, her body swaying with the music.

Blisters forming on her delicate skin as the pressure rose.

Alex circled around her, prowling like a predator.

But then, he paused, bending toward her like a man on his knees begging for forgiveness.

Leaning forward, she lost herself in their duel.

The fire between them ablaze, insatiable.

Alexander's gaze never wavered from her as his notes argued back.

A fight, a war.

A drop of sweat on his brow as his chords fought to keep up with her own.

It was an accusation.

It was an apology.

The music built a force between them, a yanking and pulling unlike anything she had ever felt before.

More than gravity.

Ruthless, beguiling.

It was carnal, raw.

They were one being, one existence.

As the song rose and fell, she could not longer tell where he ended, and she began.

The melody slowing as the tension built, her skin buzzing as their playing grew stronger and stronger.

Swirling higher and higher.

She could not breathe.

Could not think.

All she could do was play.

And hold his eyes.

She was an instrument just the same as the cello between her knees.

Nothing existed in the universe but for him.

Faster, faster.

The tempo picking up again, soaring throughout the amphitheater.

The painted cherubs on the ceiling seeming to smile as the song rose to an exhausting pace.

Her arm bending precisely, unyielding.

The intimacy of the moment reaching a pique as he stepped beside her, his bow flying quickly.

She followed suit with ardor.

Her head tilted up to keep his gaze.

Up, up.

They flew out into the night sky.

Past constellations, past the stars.

Until they were nothing.

Until they were everything.

And then they were crashing, falling.

Down through the atmosphere, down into her body.

The last notes hanging in the air as the world came back to life around her.

There was silence, deafening silence.

Until suddenly- a thunder unlike any she had ever heard.

The applause practically shaking the walls of the hall as people rose from their seats.

Alexander lowered his violin, a beaming smile glowing on his face.

He bowed gracefully, every bit the performer he had always been.

He was the sun.

And she was Icarus.

With trembling legs, she rose from her seat.

Setting down her cello, she ran a hand across the wood remorsefully.

She turned, seeking out Dante and Theodore before meeting Alexander's eyes a final time.

Just us.

Enid looked out at the hundreds of faces, her heart buzzing just as the strings had.

The applause washing over her as she lowered into a bow.

Her head falling as she trembled.

And then, just as they had planned, everything went dark.

The lights cutting out with a soft buzz.

Gasps of surprise erupted from the crowd.

Enid did not look back as she ran from the stage.

Did not look back as Alexander called out for her.

Only a minute.

All she had was a minute to get to the back door before the emergency lights came on.

She sprinted, squinting through the inky darkness.

The skirt of her dress billowing behind her.

She slammed into the door, nearly tripping as she drank in the nighttime air.

For a moment, she faltered.

The stars above twinkling as anguish overtook her.

She could still turn back; she could still choose her heart.

The door behind her burst open and the world spun in all directions.

"Come on, Enid! They're not far behind me!" Emilia grabbed her arm, pulling her toward the car waiting at the end of the alley.

The girls slid into the car, the door just barely shutting behind them as the backdoor of the music hall flew open.

"Go, Jake!" Emilia ordered the boy in the driver's seat.

There was the screeching of tires.

And then they were gone.

♪     ♪     ♪

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