a bow. She had just performed my composition at the competition' s solo showcase, and the judges were mesmerized. The pain of it was a dull, constant ac

n a thick layer of numbness. This was my new reality. I had to endure it. The only thing that kept me going was the faint, flickering hope of

. I remembered my fifteenth birthday, the last one before my father died. He had woken me up with a silly song and a plate of pancakes with a single, lopsided candle in the middle. We had spent the day at the conservatory, listening to a

with people for Chloe' s birthday party. My mother and stepfather had gone all out. Balloons in Chloe' s favorite co

ad known for years, parents of other musicians, old family friends, they all walk

r' s friends said to her, gesturing towards Chloe, who

d, her smile never reaching her eyes. S

dozen other expensive gifts from her friends. Ethan and Noah gave her a framed photo of the three of them, taken right afte

stupid bird in my chest, and it was dying a slow death. As the night wore on, and the cake was cut-a giant, three-tiered confection with "Happ

sound of their laughter following me down the hall. I sat on my bed in the dark, clutching the silver locket around my neck. I

or. It was my mother. For a wild

she asked, her voice low and tense. "Chloe is downstairs, celebrating her birthday and our win in the

t even the quartet' s w

o, Mom," I said, my v

ition, followed by a wave of annoyance. "Oh, for heaven' s sake, Avery. With everything going on, the competi

gize. She didn' t

ing. "And I need you to apologize to Chloe for your behavior. And give he

my chest. She wanted me to apologize. She wanted me to give a gift t