SLAP!
I quickly pull back my hands as the piano instructor slaps down her stick on my fingers. She wasn’t harsh with her strike, but it’s still enough to cause a stinging sensation to vibrate throughout my hand. I sigh and close my eyes. I don’t know why she has become so strict lately, but for whatever reason, she has been in such a foul mood whenever I mess up a key.
“Again, from the top!” She chides me and taps her stick against the music sheet. I want to take a break as we’ve been at this all morning, but I have no desire for her ire right now, so I make no sound to protest. I have to focus on the music notes until I can play this song off the top of my head. That was my order for the day and if I failed to perform to standard, then I would have to spend all night here until I got it right.
I couldn’t allow that to happen. Kain had promised me something special if my instructor reported that I
“Say it again!” I almost yell out in excitement to Kain as we wait for the elevator to head down to the car park. I have to get him to say it again because it doesn’t seem real! “You have to say it again! Say it!” A small smirk crosses Kain’s lips at me, even as I hold on tight to both of his arms and peer up at him with wide eyes. I don’t even care that people are staring at us right now, because what Kain just said to me has my mind full of energy! I stick my bottom lip out into a pout while I give him the best puppy-dog eye expression I can muster. Rolling his eyes at me, though still holding that smirk, Kain mutters low enough for only me to hear, “can you get any cuter?” He keeps his pose professional, a far cry from me right now. I find myself blushing and withdrawing a little. I am just too happy with this news. “Sorry, it’s just… you’re not joking? I really will?” I ask, looking back at Kain with bright, hopeful eyes. Ka
To say I am intensely nervous would be an understatement. This week passed by so fast that I didn’t have time to process my position! It was only now, the night of my first performance, that everything suddenly felt real to me. I took a deep breath in, then let it out again slowly. I had to calm my nerves before the show started, or else I might make a mistake and that wouldn’t reflect well on me, nor Kain.Speaking of the man, Kain had made sure I had been dressed to impress, and that we had a matching set. It was cute of him to make us match. He couldn’t openly tell people we were a pair, but he showed it in his secretive ways, and that thought alone warmed my heart.“I’m surprised you asked me to be your plus one tonight,” Skyler says as she drags my attention away from Kain. I offer her a smile as we sit in the limo on the way to our event. She looks absolutely beautiful, though not a
Looking over at the piano, I noticed this one was much grander than the one I practised with. Not that the practice one was of poor quality. Oh no. Even that piano had been made for Kings. The only thing that separated these two, was that the training one had been played so often by trainees that it had grown a bit weathered.I was nervous about performing in front of such an enormous crowd, but I knew I could do it. There was no way I was going to pass up this opportunity of a lifetime. If I could impress people here today, then I knew I’d be able to continue down this path Kain had picked for me. It wasn't my original goal but I trusted him.For now, the ballroom was mostly empty, as people were being entertained elsewhere, but they would start pouring in eventually, and then it would be my turn. Well, not just me, but a few others would play something before and after me, but that doesn’t stop me from feeling
I was so glad that Kain had taught me how to dance for these high-class events, otherwise, I would be a complete wallflower tonight and that would not be very good for me and Skyler at all. The amount of gossip that would spread with that in mind made me shudder to think about it. No entertainer worth their grain in salt would sit or stand to the side when at an event like this. Especially when with a date!After a couple of waltzes, it was almost time for me to take my place as an entertainer for a couple of tunes. I smiled at Skyler and patted her hand as I left her side to take over the stage for my turn. I left the melody Kain had created until last. That way, it would be the best send off and would garner the most attention. That was my plan, anyhow.It didn’t take long for the last group of musicians to play their last melody and give their thanks and fair wells. They then introduced me to the stage, letting the
As I swapped with the next person who would play a few melodies, I held my gaze on Kain and Skyler. He hadn’t rebuffed her clinging, which made me feel uneasy. However, I knew I couldn’t start an argument or fight here, of all places. Perhaps Kain was of the same mindset? That was all I could think of. That he had not resisted Skyler might have also been part of his reasoning. I couldn’t tell what he was thinking from his expressions.“You wrote those lyrics in such a short time?” He asked me with a raise of his eyebrows. “I am impressed. Doing so has given you more spotlight, so well done,” he continued, his lips unable to hide the smile.“I couldn’t help but want to write something for it, seeing as you trusted me with something so special,” I replied. Despite my feelings of jealousy bubbling up, I was happy that Kain had praised me so highly. I tried not to pay much attention to how S
“Everything okay, Liam?” Skyler’s question doesn’t come as much of a surprise to me when I get back to her. My flushed face is obvious to everyone here at the party. Although none of them is wise enough to know the reason behind it, I’m sure there are going to be a lot of guesses. I wonder how many are going to assume Kain and I fought over Skyler? They would only be a little right. It was because of Skyler, but we didn’t fight, and it wasn’t because Kain had stolen her from me.Ah, the tangled webs we weave.I offered her a small smile and a nod of her head. “I’m fine, yes,” I replied, hoping she didn’t notice how dishevelled my hair looked from the hot make-out session Kain and I had just returned from. I had tried to tidy it up again before leaving. Even though it was just kissing, it was just as passionate as the other times. I had to remind Kain where we were, as I was sure he
It was stressful trying to locate Kain while still paying attention to Skyler in a way that I did not make her aware of my actions. She had told me again to not worry about it and that Kain could handle himself just fine, but I wasn’t about to let him walk into trouble unprepared. I knew my boyfriend more than anyone else. He never visited his father unless the man had summoned him, and he rarely talked about him too. The two did not get along all that well, from what I understood. Double-checking my phone, I could tell that Kain hadn’t seen my message yet. He rarely looked at his phone during events like this, but I had wanted to at least exhaust all my options before throwing in the towel. If I couldn’t find him personally, then maybe he’d see the message. That was my hope, anyway, but so far, luck was not on my side. At this point, I had not been paying attention to Skyler, and I had lost her in the crowd somewhere. Shoot. I hoped she wouldn
“Father, please. Don’t you think this is a little unusual in this day and age? No one arranges a marriage for their children anymore,” Kain’s voice lacked any warmth within it. However, he was a master at concealing his emotions to where no one knew they upset him if they had. I knew he was not happy about being forced into anything such as marriage. Not to mention my own reservations! Kain’s father peered at his son critically before saying, “and yet you do nothing but experiment with every woman you come across, never once settling down. It is a bad image for the company for you to be messing around in such a childish way. Besides, this union will be good for both of our companies.” I swallowed hard. I wanted to protest, but I couldn’t say anything. Fear of losing Kain washed over me. Even if I fought to keep Kain, the two of us could risk our jobs. While I would give up anything, even my chances of being a star for Kain, I wasn’t sure he wou