Chapter 24: Composing Music, She’s Got This

“Mr. Sebastian!” Isabella, who had studied music since childhood, immediately recognized the man and stood up quickly, showing her respect. Sebastian chuckled and patted Isabella’s shoulder.

“There’s no need to be so nervous, young lady. I was just passing by and heard such beautiful piano music that I couldn’t help but come over.”

“I hope I’m not interrupting?”

Isabella was too nervous to speak, so she just shook her head vigorously. Olivia hadn’t expected that, by a twist of fate, Isabella would meet Sebastian earlier than anticipated. She stood by, watching with satisfaction. She was confident that, with Isabella’s talent, she would still gain Sebastian’s approval in this life.

“How old are you?” As expected, Sebastian looked at Isabella with a smile in his eyes.

“I’m 21,” Isabella replied nervously.

“How long have you been playing the piano?” Sebastian asked.

“I started learning when I was five,” Isabella said.

The two of them, one older and one younger, conversed happily. Olivia stood aside, feeling very content. In her previous life, Isabella had met Sebastian only after graduation, and soon after, Sebastian publicly announced that he wanted to take Isabella as his apprentice.

But shortly after the news broke, Isabella was involved in an accident that ruined her hands, ending her chances of ever playing again. After the injury, Isabella once called Olivia, crying. Though she didn’t say much, Olivia could tell from that call that Isabella’s hands were ruined by a wealthy girl who was a nominal apprentice under Sebastian.

It seemed that the rich girl had begged Sebastian for a long time, and her family had used their connections to get her that position. But when Sebastian took Isabella as his apprentice, it fueled the girl’s hatred, leading her to sabotage Isabella’s hands. Unfortunately, in her past life, Isabella never told Olivia who that person was. As Olivia bit her straw, she pondered how to eliminate this potential threat in her life.

While she was deep in thought, Isabella’s voice suddenly sounded in her car.

“Livi, where did you get that sheet music?”

Still thinking about dealing with Isabella’s enemy, Olivia replied offhandedly, “I wrote it.”

Isabella was stunned and fell silent for a moment. The sudden silence made Olivia feel something was off. She turned to see Isabella looking at her in shock. Sebastian, too, was surprised, his eyes widening slightly.

“Young lady, did you write this piece?” Sebastian had been drawn by the piano music, partly because of Isabella’s superb playing and partly because the piece itself was so captivating. Even someone like Sebastian, who had played countless world-renowned compositions, couldn’t help but be intrigued by the dark and oppressive atmosphere of the piece. The piece conveyed a sense of suppression and struggle, followed by a final moment of release and relief, as if it had undergone a hellish trial. It was hard to believe such a complex composition could come from a girl in her twenties. How could someone so young have such profound insight?

Olivia blinked and replied, “Yes.” In her previous life, she had been devoted to Alexander and didn’t want to use his money, so she composed music at home to earn some extra income. Composing music was something she knew well!

Sebastian’s gaze toward Olivia suddenly became more complex.

“Wait a moment.” Without saying much, Sebastian stepped out of the room. He couldn’t believe that such an exquisite piece could have been composed by a young girl. He dialed a friend’s number.

“I have a piece of music here. Can you help me figure out who composed it?”

The person on the other end asked, “What piece? Send it over, and I’ll take a look.” Sebastian sent over the sheet music he had photographed earlier. His friend had a much keener eye for music composition than he did—there wasn’t a piece in the world that his friend couldn’t trace back to its origin.