“Ha! You saw right through my clever plan.” “I just want him to pay for everything and look good doing it!” The mirror laughed again.
“If you bring such a handsome cousin along, those male classmates will hate you for it.”
“That’s exactly my goal.” “Let my cousin charm all the girls those guys bring.” “See if they dare to suggest bringing their family next time!”
“Why fight them at all?” Evelyn asked, amused.
“Well, I’m twisted inside.” “I can’t stand seeing other people in pairs, so I’ll break them up!” “If you don’t promise to bring me, I’ll just have to provoke you!”
“I already promised to bring my family.” “And I’m bringing you too!” “I’m numb to it all anyway!”
“Why do you keep bringing that up!”
“To be honest, he only signed up for himself before he promised to bring anyone!”
“Oh!”
“But you can’t skip school tomorrow.” “If he finds out, he’ll be crushed!”
“I really have things to do.” “Unless you change it to the day after tomorrow, that’s different.”
“Come on, just for you, we all have to change our schedules to fit yours!”
“Then there’s no choice.” “I’ll just have to watch you all go eat delicious food and drink, while I’m stuck here at school doing extra activities.” Evelyn sighed pitifully.
Just then, Evelyn caught a glimpse of Alexander’s figure from the corner of her eye. She said to Charlotte on the other end, “I have to go. Have fun. I’m hanging up.”
Without waiting for Charlotte to reply, she ended the call. She was afraid Alexander might say something Charlotte could hear. Right now, being with Alexander was hard enough to explain!
“Lonely?” Alexander asked.
Evelyn was caught off guard. She swallowed and explained awkwardly, “My classmates are going for a barbecue tomorrow. I can’t make it to the school event.”
“They’re not coming to cheer you on?” Alexander asked.
“No, they’re elementary school classmates.”
“Do you want to go?”
“No, I just want to have a barbecue!” Evelyn replied sheepishly.
Truth was, she felt awkward seeing Noah now. So it wasn’t so much about missing the event as it was about craving the barbecue.
Alexander nodded, said nothing more, and walked toward the corner of the living room. Evelyn noticed a grand piano there and froze.
Alexander turned to look at her. Evelyn snapped out of it and walked over.
“Can you play?” Alexander asked.
“Just the basics,” Evelyn answered.
Back then, her parents wanted to turn her and Victoria into well-rounded talents. They took almost every class available. But she only studied piano for two years.
Victoria hated music and refused to learn. She was forced to study for two years, but eventually rebelled and quit. She couldn’t stand the sound of practice.
In the end, Evelyn was bribed with a lollipop and a set meal. She gave up the piano and embraced the world of food.
After Alexander tuned the piano, he asked Evelyn to play a piece.
“I’ve almost forgotten everything!” Evelyn said, embarrassed.
“Just play whatever you remember,” Alexander encouraged.
Finally, Evelyn had no choice but to straighten her back. She looked at the sheet music in front of her. She found the score for “Ode to Joy” and felt a small surge of pride. Taking a deep breath, she relaxed her fingers and began to play.
It turned out she still loved playing the piano. But when forced to choose between food and piano, she always chose food.
After finishing, Evelyn turned to Alexander, a mix of embarrassment and excitement on her face. She looked like a child waiting for a teacher’s approval.
“Do you have the sheet music for the song you’re playing tomorrow?”
“No,” Evelyn shook her head.
She wasn’t even sure she could pronounce the Minnan dialect clearly. She was just passing through. Passing through. Passing through. If it was important, say it three times!
“Sing it first. I’ll listen, and I’ll accompany you,” Alexander said.
“Ah? Oh!” Evelyn stared at him in surprise. After a moment, she stood up and gave him her seat.
Evelyn stood by the piano and took a deep breath. Her face turned red, but she didn’t know how to sing better. Alexander didn’t push her. His slender fingers danced across the white keys, and gentle music filled the room.
Evelyn’s nervousness faded. Looking straight ahead, she cleared her throat and tried to sing the Minnan song she had practiced for a week.
After singing for a while, Evelyn realized she wasn’t very nervous. But she had no idea what she was singing. She looked at Alexander nervously and said, “That’s it.”
“What’s the song about?” Alexander asked.
“It’s about the mood of two people about to break up.”
“Translate the lyrics for me.”
“Oh.” Evelyn paused, then began translating the lyrics reluctantly.
“Are you singing tomorrow with an accompaniment track?” Alexander asked again.
“Yes. It would sound strange to sing in a chorus,” Evelyn replied.
“I suggest you play and sing yourself.” “Your basic skills are fine.” “It should be no problem if you practice hard tonight.”
“Ah? But I don’t even have the sheet music!”
“It’s not too late to prepare now.” “This song would be more suitable for piano accompaniment with a few adjustments,” Alexander said.
Evelyn felt like a thousand horses were galloping through her mind. What was happening? She felt like Alexander was pushing her toward the semi-finals. But she just wanted to get through the stage!
“Wouldn’t that be too much?” Evelyn hesitated.
“Don’t you want to give your best performance?” Alexander frowned.
“If I said I just wanted to get it over with, would that be too much?” Evelyn asked cautiously.
“Why would you just want to get it over with?” Alexander looked directly at her.
“I don’t have any real talent.” “I had to enter this competition, so I just have to make do,” Evelyn replied awkwardly.
“Now that you’re in the competition, you should do your best.” “No matter why you were chosen before.”
“Alright, it’s up to you,” Evelyn nodded.
The next night, Evelyn finally understood what inhuman torture and spiritual abuse meant. Alexander tirelessly revised the score over and over. She practiced it repeatedly, just to achieve the perfect effect.
After a long time, Alexander finally let her go. Evelyn felt like she could fall asleep leaning on the piano stand.
“Very sleepy?” Alexander asked.
“Yeah,” Evelyn muttered, not denying it.
“I just want you to do your best,” Alexander said with a smile.
“I know, but this competition doesn’t seem that important,” Evelyn whispered.
“If you don’t handle small things well, how can you handle big things?”
“Was Alexander training her to be a strong woman?”
“Go to sleep.” “You can practice tomorrow morning.” “It’s your turn in the afternoon, right?” Alexander finally gave in.
“Yeah,” Evelyn nodded, her eyes almost closed.
“Sleep,” Alexander pulled her up.
Evelyn squinted and followed him.
“Where do I sleep tonight?” she whispered.
“Master bedroom.”
“Oh.” Evelyn lowered her head and silently followed Alexander into the master bedroom.
Seeing how comfortable the bed looked, she flopped down and muttered contentedly, “Finally, I can sleep!”
Alexander watched her with a mix of tears and laughter.
“Evelyn, did you take a shower?”
“Yeah, I did before I left,” Evelyn answered vaguely.
Alexander said nothing. He got up, went to the dressing room, and took out one of his T-shirts to use as pajamas for Evelyn.
“Change into this before you sleep.”
“Oh,” Evelyn said after a moment.
She got up, took the T-shirt, and started taking off her clothes without opening her eyes. After putting on Alexander’s T-shirt, she automatically crawled toward the head of the bed, pulled up the covers, and went to sleep.
Alexander put Evelyn’s clothes aside and went into the bathroom to brush his teeth and wash his face.
Just then, Evelyn suddenly opened her eyes. She thought, who was talking to her just now? She sat up and looked around. There was no one.
Deciding it was just an illusion, she lay back down and went to sleep.
At dawn, Evelyn opened her bleary eyes and saw Alexander still sleeping. She froze and blinked. She thought she was seeing things. She stared at Alexander.
Could this be a dream? She couldn’t help pinching her thigh secretly. It hurt!
So she confirmed she wasn’t dreaming. This was reality. She wasn’t seeing things.
She remembered Alexander bringing her to Sterling Manor last night. They had changed the music, composed the score, and practiced the song she would compete with in the afternoon all night.
She never knew Alexander was not only obsessive-compulsive but also a perfectionist. As a result, she had no chance to slack off.
Right now, Alexander was lying on his side, still sleeping, with his arm under her pillow. Like a little bird, she was nestled on his arm, curled up beside him. She didn’t feel uncomfortable at all. In fact, she felt like it was dawn!
Evelyn suddenly got goosebumps. They seemed a little too close. But Alexander was gay, so it didn’t matter. That was the only way Evelyn could comfort herself.
Carefully, she moved a little away from him. Then she gently lifted the covers and got out of bed.
After looking around, Evelyn walked toward the bathroom.