Home / When I Stopped Singing for Her / Chapter 1 - Chapter 10

All Chapters of When I Stopped Singing for Her: Chapter 1 - Chapter 10

10 Chapters

Chapter 1

After the concert ended, the backstage area was even noisier than the stage had been.Champagne corks popped right beside my ears."We broke the record! The livestream just hit a new peak!""Lena and Liam made history tonight!"I stood beside the sound console, still dressed in my silver-gray suit.The screen replayed footage from the concert.Under the spotlight, Liam held Lena's hand as he sang along to the backing vocals I had stayed up until 4:00 a.m. to record just three days earlier.Fans wept in the audience. Comments flooded the screen.[Liam's voice is so pure.][The second he opens his mouth, I want to fall in love.][Lena really found the perfect voice.]I lowered my head and glanced at the pass around my neck. It read: [Sound Engineering Team, Julian Payne]A staff member hurried past, brushing against the hem of my jacket. "Sorry, man."He hadn't even noticed how sharply I was dressed.When Lena stepped offstage, a crowd immediately gathered around her. She c

Chapter 2

The day the new album dropped, I was the first to open the streaming platform. Liam was credited as both lyricist and composer on all three songs.I stared at his name. My eyes didn't sting, and my fingers didn't tremble.I took a screenshot and saved it to a folder. That made seventeen.Ethan poked his head through the doorway. "Julian, have you seen the new album?"I closed the page. "Yeah.""Everyone's praising Liam for his songwriting." His voice dropped. "Don't let it get to you."I opened the project file."Let's get back in the booth. We've still got another track to record today," Ethan said.…By the third take, my throat had started to feel raw.I took off my headphones and reached for my water bottle.Someone had left a bottle of warm water on the table. Three words were written on it: [Don't stay up.]I recognized Lena's handwriting.Ethan noticed the bottle and gave me a knowing smile. "Lena left you water again?"I pushed it aside. "Let's record."He scratc

Chapter 3

At the gala planning meeting, I was assigned a seat in the farthest corner of the room.Danson projected the setlist onto the screen.[Lost in the Fog. Written by Liam Parker. Performed by Lena Mitchell and Liam Parker.]My knuckles pressed against the edge of my chair.Danson began. "The brand wants to present this as a testament to Lena and Liam's three-year love story."Vincent Foster nodded. "The story behind their signature love song makes for a compelling narrative."Liam chuckled softly. "I'm not sure I can pull off my part."Lena glanced at him. "We have Julian."Everyone turned toward me.Danson fixed his gaze on me. "Julian, you'll be responsible for the entire backing vocal arrangement."My throat tightened. "This song…"The conference room fell silent for a brief moment.Lena looked up. "What about it?"I stared at the songwriting credits on the screen. "Nothing."…After the meeting, I stopped Lena in the hallway. "Can't we use a different song instead of Lo

Chapter 4

Three days before the gala, I sought Lena out in the studio. "I want to revoke the authorization statement."Her hand froze halfway toward a document. "Julian."I stood before her. "You can't keep giving Liam credit for Lost in the Fog."She looked up at me, her expression calm, as though this were nothing more than a minor deviation from her plans."Don't start. That statement was supposed to save the tour." Lena set down her pen. "You signed it yourself."My breath caught."If you bring this up now, no one will be able to clean up the mess." Her voice remained perfectly even.Everyone involved would suffer. That was what her tone implied. I'd become an accomplice, and somehow, telling the truth would make me the one responsible for hurting everyone else.Lena rose and walked past me."Julian, if you leave, you won't have much of a track record to fall back on in this industry." She picked up her coat. "I don't want things to turn ugly between us."She spoke as casually as i

Chapter 5

I left backstage and took a taxi straight to the airport.The early-morning flight was nearly empty. Just before boarding, my phone lit up with a message from Lena.Lena: [Julian, where did you go]There was no question mark.I stared at the message for three seconds before switching off my phone.As the plane took off, the city lights receded into a thin line. The bleeding on the back of my hand had stopped, but a bruise had begun to form beneath the edge of my sleeve.A flight attendant approached. "Sir, would you like an ice pack?"I tugged my sleeve down. "No, thank you."…When I landed at the airport for my connecting flight, I switched my phone back on and found dozens of messages waiting for me.Ethan had sent one voice message after another. I played the first.His voice was frantic. "Julian, you really left?"The second message followed immediately. "Lena came to the studio this morning. She saw your empty workstation, and the look on her face was terrifying."In

Chapter 6

It was 5:00 a.m. in Norvale, and the sky was still dark.Erin Berner, a producer at the record label, was waiting for me at the arrivals exit. She had short hair and calloused hands.When she spotted me, she smiled and extended her hand. "Julian Payne?"I nodded and shook her hand."I finally get to meet you." Her command of my native language was shaky, but her sincerity was unmistakable. "I've listened to your demos at least 50 times."I froze for a moment. "Those were just some casual recordings I made years ago."Erin shook her head. "Even a casual recording can have a soul."My throat tightened. In the past three years, hardly anyone had sought me out for my voice.…The recording studio was small, with aging but well-maintained equipment and walls covered in posters of independent musicians.Erin handed me a pair of white in-ear monitors. "These are for you."I accepted them and examined their smooth, unmarked casings."Aren't you going to engrave my name on them?" I

Chapter 7

A month after I left, my former team released their first new song back home.I came across it during my lunch break at the recording studio in Norvale.Lena' and Liam's new song had performed well on its first day, and their fans were still busy managing the comment section.[Liam's voice is so clean.][Lena is in top form.]But three days later, the tone of the comments began to shift.A music critic published a review. [This song lacks substance. When Liam's vocals stand on their own, almost all the depth disappears.]The top comment read: [There used to be a subtle backing vocal line in his songs. Now it's gone.]Then Ethan texted me.Ethan: [Julian, the studio brought in five new backing vocalists today. Lena says every single one of them sounds wrong. When the recording engineer asked what she was using as a reference, she pulled up your old vocal tracks.]I didn't reply.Erin handed me a cup of coffee. "Your old team?"I nodded."You don't have to look," she said.

Chapter 8

On the third day of the controversy, Liam's team released a statement.[All creative works were used with lawful authorization. Liam Parker has never knowingly misappropriated anyone else's work.]The comment section immediately erupted.[They actually have the nerve to use the words "lawful authorization."][Julian hasn't said a single bad word about them, yet he's still handling all this with incredible dignity.][That statement he released last year looks more and more like something he was forced to make.]Reporters investigated the timeline and discovered that the statement had been released exactly one day before ticket sales for Lena's tour closed.Another topic shot to the top of the trending list.[Liam Parker's Authorization Statement Timeline]…I was having lunch in the recording studio when my phone vibrated more than a dozen times.Every notification was a message from Liam.Liam: [Julian, have you seen what's happening online?]Liam: [They're being way too h

Chapter 9

The day my independent album went live, heavy snow blanketed Norvale.Erin was even more nervous than I was. She clutched her laptop and paced back and forth across the recording studio. "What if the servers crash?""It's an independent label. It's not going to be that dramatic," I said.Half an hour later, she turned the laptop toward me. "It's dramatic now."The album had broken the label's first-day streaming record. Music critics at home and abroad published reviews with nearly identical headlines.[Julian Payne Doesn't Need Anyone Else's Name]The album featured 11 songs. I had written and composed every one of them. And I had performed them all myself.My artist profile on the streaming platforms contained just one line: [Written, composed, performed, and produced by Julian Payne.]I stared at those words for a long time.Erin handed me a tissue. "Are you crying?"I touched the corner of my eye. "No."She smiled. "Your eyes are red."One song on the album carried a sp

Chapter 10

On the third day after the awards ceremony, I was in the recording studio, recording additional vocals for a new song.The intercom light came on. Erin stood at the door, her expression hesitant. "Someone's here to see you."I removed my in-ear monitors. "Who?"She glanced at me. "Lena Mitchell."My fingers froze on the mixing console's fader.Two seconds passed before I replied, "Let her in."When Lena entered, I remained seated.She had lost a considerable amount of weight, and dark circles shadowed her eyes. She held a small bag in one hand and lingered by the door, reluctant to venture farther inside.I'd never seen her like this before.Back then, there had always been a place for me in the recording studio, just as there had been for her. Now, the studio was mine, and she was merely a visitor."Julian." Her voice was terribly hoarse.I nodded. "Sit down."She remained standing. "Congratulations on your award.""Thank you."Even I was surprised by how calmly I said t

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