When I got back to the rental place, it was already twelve at night. The lights in the room were all off, and Alaricka tiptoed in. She thought Tamika had already gone to bed, but to her surprise, Tamika was just walking into the middle of the living room. With a snap, the lights in the living room came on, and at the same time, Tamika’s cheerful voice rang out. “Alarieka, happy birthday!”
Alarieka was a little stunned, looking at Tamika standing in front of her with a fancy cake. There were bright candles burning on the cake. Tamika had a big smile on her face, and her eyes were shining. In that moment, Alarieka’s eyes and the tip of her nose felt sore. She suddenly lowered her head, “Mom, I thought you forgot my birthday.”
Tamika walked over and said softly, “How could I forget your birthday? Come over and have some cake. I really didn’t know where you went after school. I was waiting for you the whole time, and I almost fell asleep. Come eat some cake, then take a shower and go to bed.”
Alarieka pressed her lips together and nodded, her voice a little hoarse, “Okay.”
Alaricka and Tamika sat across from each other and finished the cake bit by bit. Tamika lowered her head and said softly, “Alaricka, I’ve thought it through. You study hard, I won’t push you anymore, as long as you’re happy.”
Alaricka lowered her head, gripped the spoon tightly, and tears fell from her eyes. “Okay. I got it.”
After having some cake, Alaricka took a quick shower, put the phone on silent, ignored all those calls from a bunch of people, and fell asleep soon after.
The next day at school, the piano teacher Reyna called her over. Reyna looked delicate and gentle, and she spoke softly: “Alarieka, I already told you on the phone, you don’t need to perform at the school anniversary. The school invited Roschelle and Mr. Argent to play.”
Alarieka nodded, “Okay, I got it.”
Reyna looked a bit sorry: “I know you prepared a long time for this performance. It’s the school’s fault, so now there’s a chance. There had to be four hosts for the school anniversary, two guys and two girls. Now they were just missing one girl. See if you wanted to be a host.”
Alarieka looked up, couldn’t believe it at first, then nodded right away: “Okay, I’m willing to do it.”
Reyna gave a gentle smile, “Okay, I’ll give you the script. Practice well these days, and after the rehearsal, you’ll go straight on stage.”
After school, Alaricka went to the backstage area of the school celebration. The school cared a lot about the event, especially since Roschelle was invited. It could be used as a news highlight to promote the school. So, this time the school anniversary stage was really grand, and the equipment and instruments were all top-notch. She quietly watched.
I turned my head and saw a few workers carefully carrying a black piano in, and they gently set the piano on the stage. “Be careful, this was Mr. Argent’s piano, don’t break it.”
Alarieka’s eyes darkened, and her hands slowly clenched into fists. This piano was expensive. Kieran had it flown in from abroad on purpose. It held a lot of stories. Alarieka remembered clearly, Kieran gave this piano to Roschelle on her birthday.
Just last year on her birthday, her relationship with Kieran wasn’t as tense as it is now. At that time, Kieran really seemed to treat her like a little sister, taking care of everything and being super thoughtful. Ever since she was adopted by the Argent family, Kieran took every one of her birthdays really seriously. This piano, worth over eight figures, was Kieran’s birthday gift to her. Back then, Kieran had already brought her to the piano room.
Her eyes were covered with a black cloth, and right behind her was Kieran’s broad, warm chest and that irresistible scent of his. Her heart was pounding, and Kieran led her to touch the doorknob of the piano room. Kieran’s voice softened a bit: “Open the door yourself.”
At that moment, her heartbeat got louder and louder. The sudden sound of high heels behind me stopped everything. Kieran’s hand on the back of her hand suddenly let go, and the warmth leaving made Alaricka zone out a little. Then, it was Roschelle’s voice.
That was the first time she heard Roschelle’s voice, and also the first time she met Roschelle. She had heard from others before about Roschelle’s beauty and Kieran’s true feelings for her. She thought Roschelle was just Kieran’s past. Until Roschelle, with teary eyes, handed her diary full of girlish secrets to Kieran, Kieran’s gentle gaze suddenly darkened when he saw the love words about him in the diary.