Alexander Sterling opened his eyes. He glanced toward the bathroom door. He said nothing. Then he closed his eyes and went back to sleep.
Inside the bathroom, Evie searched for toiletries. She caught her reflection in the mirror. She froze.
When did she get this shirt? She looked down at the fabric. Then she stared at herself again.
This wasn’t her shirt. It looked like a man’s shirt. It was so big she could wear it like a dress.
But how did she end up in this? She had no memory of changing.
A thought hit her. She scared herself.
Did Alexander change her clothes? No way! Evie shook her head hard.
If he had helped her change, she would remember. She wasn’t drunk. She wasn’t unconscious. There was no way someone could dress her without her knowing.
Unless she changed in a daze. Maybe she put it on and fell asleep right after. That was the only explanation.
She pulled at the T-shirt. Then she noticed something worse. She wasn’t wearing any underwear. The curve of her chest was obvious under the thin fabric.
Her face burned. She hunched over and searched for toiletries.
There was a new set in the cabinet. She grabbed it. After washing up, she cracked the bathroom door open like a thief. She peeked out.
Alexander was still asleep. Evie sighed in relief.
She spotted her clothes on a chair. She crept over, grabbed them, and hurried back to the bathroom to change.
When Alexander woke up again, he washed up and changed into a fresh suit. He walked out of the bedroom. Evie wasn’t in the living room.
He picked up the cordless phone and called her. Her phone rang from the bedroom.
He went downstairs. In the kitchen, he saw a busy figure. Evie wore an apron. She was frying eggs.
Her movements were clumsy. But she looked serious.
Alexander smiled. “Good morning, Evie.”
“Good morning.” Evie turned. Her face turned red. “The eggs are almost done. Breakfast will be ready soon.”
Alexander nodded. He washed his hands and grabbed the dishes.
Evie slid the fried eggs onto a plate. She turned off the stove. She rinsed the pan. Then she took off her apron, washed her hands, picked up the plate, and walked out of the kitchen.
Earlier that morning, she had come downstairs. She found some ingredients in the fridge. So she cooked some porridge. She opened a can of fish. She opened a jar of pickled vegetables. She fried two eggs.
Neither of them spoke. They ate breakfast in silence.
After breakfast, Alexander spoke. “What time do you need to be there this afternoon?”
“By 2:30,” Evie replied.
“We’ll have lunch first. Then I’ll take you back to school.”
Evie nodded.
At eleven in the morning, Alexander drove her to a villa. They had lunch outside. Then he took her to a styling studio.
It wasn’t anything over the top. She just got light makeup. She picked a simple dress suitable for the competition.
Evie stared at herself in the mirror. She barely recognized herself.
She usually wore glasses. Now she had contact lenses. Without glasses, she looked like a different person.
And with light makeup, even though it was subtle, her whole style had changed.
“Is this too much?” Evie looked at Alexander nervously. She tugged at her skirt. She didn’t know where to put her hands.
“No. It looks good,” Alexander said calmly.
The stylist agreed. She said Evie had a good foundation. She didn’t need heavy makeup. Just a little touch-up made her features stand out.
Evie’s face turned even redder.
“It’s almost time. Let’s go,” Alexander said, checking his watch.
Evie nodded. She thanked the stylist. Then she followed Alexander out of the studio.
At the school gate, Alexander turned to her. He asked half-jokingly, “Sure you don’t want me to come cheer you on?”
Evie shook her head. “If you come, I’ll be even more nervous.”
Alexander laughed. “Good luck, then.”
“I’ll do my best.” Evie nodded.
She said goodbye. She opened the door. She got out of the car. She walked toward the school gate.
Just before turning inside, she looked back. She saw Alexander’s car. She smiled and waved.
Then she lowered her head and walked through the gate.
Alexander wasn’t so hard to get along with. Evie thought about this. Her mood lifted.
She couldn’t change the fact that they were married. So she had to accept it calmly. But at least she was lucky to marry a man who was easy to be around.
It was almost 2:30. Evie didn’t go back to the dorm. She went straight to the auditorium.
She knew there was a piano there. Someone would be playing it. So she didn’t have to worry about finding an instrument.
She just needed to tell the host first.
One of the hosts was Adrian Cole. He was the director of the school’s art department. She knew him slightly from different majors.
Evie entered the auditorium. She went backstage to find Adrian. She told him her performance had changed. She would no longer use a backing track. She would play and sing the original song herself.
“What’s your program?” Adrian asked.
“A Minnan dialect song,” Evie explained. “It’s the only Minnan song in this competition. It’s from our department.”
“I’m Evie Vance,” she said awkwardly.
Adrian looked at the program list. Then he turned and stared at her in surprise.
Evie felt embarrassed.
“I didn’t recognize you without your glasses. You look beautiful today,” Adrian praised.
“I… I put on some makeup for the stage. My program is changed to piano accompaniment. I’ll play and sing myself.” Evie blushed.
If Alexander hadn’t taken her to the studio, she wouldn’t have dressed up. She would have worn her usual clothes.
“Piano accompaniment? Can you play?”
“A little,” Evie nodded.
“Don’t be modest. Wait here. I’ll tell my partner. Your program is number nine. It’ll be your turn soon.”
“Okay. Thank you.”
Evie walked out of the backstage. She went to the front to find a seat.
She looked around. She didn’t see her friends.
Hmph. They said they would come cheer for her. Now it was almost starting, and they were nowhere.
At 2:40, the preliminaries officially began. Evie watched the performances one by one.
Her nervousness faded. Everyone was so good. She was basically just making up the numbers. She had no pressure.
If Alexander asked, she could honestly say she tried her best. But her opponents were too strong.
Soon, it was the eighth program. “Number nine, please prepare.” Evie stood up and walked backstage.
In the audience, Emily and Stella whispered. “Why isn’t Evie here yet? Did she chicken out?”
“I don’t think so. That’s not like her. She’s been preparing so hard for a week. There’s no way she’d give up now. Maybe something happened?” Stella said nervously.
Just then, they heard a familiar melody. Almost at the same time, they turned to the stage. They saw a beautiful girl in a simple dress. She was playing the piano and singing a familiar Minnan song.
The audience fell silent. Everyone was captivated by her voice.
During the interlude, Emily and Stella stared at each other. “Is that Evie?”
“No way!” Stella’s jaw dropped.
“If it’s not Evie, then who?”
“It has to be her. The host just announced contestant Evie Vance.”
“Oh my God. Did Evie get plastic surgery?”
“…”
The song ended. Evie stood up. She took a bow. Then she walked off stage.
She returned to her seat.
When she sat down at the piano, she hadn’t felt nervous. She had felt relaxed.
Maybe it was because the previous contestants were all so good. She knew she didn’t have a chance at the next round. So there was no pressure. Her mood was light.
She loved the melody and the lyrics. The song had a beautiful artistic conception. She wasn’t here for the competition. She was here to enjoy the music.
She didn’t get nervous until she heard the applause. When she took her bow, she looked up. She saw how many people were there. The auditorium was packed.
That startled her.
So when she walked back to her seat, her palms were sweating.
After her performance, she could leave if she wanted. The results would be posted on the bulletin board and the school BBS next week.
But she sat back down. She wanted to watch the other contestants. It helped calm her nerves.
Emily and Stella crept over. They crouched down and sat behind Evie. Then Emily reached out and tapped Evie’s shoulder.
Evie jumped. She turned around. She saw Emily and Stella. She immediately smiled. She mouthed, “I thought you guys weren’t coming.”
“Who said we weren’t coming? Our whole class is here.” Emily pointed to a group in another section.
Evie turned. Most of her classmates were there.
She thought they would abandon her. But they actually came to cheer her on.
She had said she wouldn’t need their help. But now she felt grateful.