Volume 4 / Chapter 133
TL: LightNovelCafe
[TN: I hope you enjoy 😛 ]
That evening, Jun Hyuk ate the delicious Argentinian food tarta that Amelia made, sat her on the armchair in the living room, and sat in front of the piano.
It had taken him a lot of courage to decide to show Amelia his piano.
“Now, listen to this piano that’s truly mine. This is the first time I’m playing the piano in front of someone else.”
Amelia could not understand what Jun Hyuk was saying. His first time? There are a lot of people who have admired Jun Hyuk’s piano until now, including herself.
When she heard the first note of Chopin, she realized what Jun Hyuk had meant by ‘piano that’s truly mine’.
Jun Hyuk played Chopin, Beethoven, and Rachmaninoff one after the other. After listening to his play for over an hour, Amelia was weeping with shock and sadness.
Jun Hyuk finished playing, covered the piano, and spoke to Amelia,
“Do you think you could like piano music like this?”
Amelia quietly went behind Jun Hyuk and hugged him tightly.
“No. It’s not something I can like, but it’s something I can’t help but love.”
***
A new semester started, but Jun Hyuk and Amelia did not attend any of the concerts opening at school every night.
After their classes, they went back to their home and spent long nights in front of the piano. They needed to soundproof the entire apartment because a neighbor could not handle it anymore and reported them.
Amelia endured Jun Hyuk’s sharp music and did not get overshadowed at all. Rather, she went further.
If a scintillating blade is before your eyes, you are unable to appreciate the beauty of the knife and become lost in fear. When a sharp blade in hidden in a beautifully crafted scabbard occasionally shows its sharpness, the alluring breath of the master is felt.
Amelia was resolved to creating a beautiful scabbard for Jun Hyuk.
A guy standing proudly in front of Jun Hyuk caught his attention.
“You bought this?”
“Of course. There’s no reason for someone to give it to me for free.”
A red Lexus convertible was waiting for Jun Hyuk in the condo parking lot.
“What do we need a car for? The school is 15 minutes away on foot.”
“There will be a lot of reasons why we need a car from now on.”
He could figure out the hidden intentions behind Amelia’s smile when the weekend came.
Friday afternoon, Amelia yelled ‘TGIF!’ and put Jun Hyuk in the car. She left New York and got on the highway. Jun Hyuk sat in the passenger seat because he does not have a license, put on his seatbelt, and enjoyed the incredible speed Amelia went in.
“Oh, you know how to enjoy the speed when you don’t even have a license.”
“Ha ha. I’ve gone 250km on a Ducati. This is nothing.”
“Really? You want to bet?”
The two people left their cellphones, laptops, sheet music, and scores at home and traveled every week with just their IDs and wallets. With time, they began missing classes on weekdays to travel instead of just on the weekends. They gradually became delinquent college students.
***
“I think it’s time to show the both of you the results.”
“I’m sure you realize that we did not nag for 2 months after the semester started, but we can’t just stand back and watch anymore.”
Professors Randall Poster and Lenny Greenfield gave Jun Hyuk and Amelia a warning. Most conservatories maintain a free atmosphere and focus on each students’ development, but they need to keep basic rules. Especially the concerts that Clayton prides itself in, are an important factor in assessing students’ abilities.
Not only the professors, but the other students are only able to accept the situation if they show as much improvement in their performances as they missed classes.
The large theater in the school was full of students when word spread that the two students would be performing for the first time since the start of the semester. All of the professors took seats as well to listen to Jun Hyuk’s piano.
Professor Randall Poster was especially full of anticipation because he thought that this evening may be when he would see a new Jun Hyuk.
On the stage, two grand pianos were facing each other.
A collaborative performance between Amelia who is already a famous pianist, and Jun who is a certified genius. As it was the first time that the two people were performing together, there was a lot of attention as to which song they would play.
They walked out on the stage together, bowed to the audience, and sat in front of the piano.
The audience began to murmur. They did not sit in front of a piano each, but at the same one.
When 20 fingers started dancing on top of 88 keys, the murmuring of the audience grew even louder. A song they were hearing for the first time. As anyone would have guessed, it is a new song that Jun Hyuk wrote.
It was a short song that did not even last 5 minutes, but an incredible cheering exploded at the end. The first reason was that the upbeat marching style of music had brought joy to the audience, and the second was the couple’s brilliant technique.
The greatest reason for the applause was their perfect teamwork, making it seem as though one person had been playing with four hands instead of two people being at the piano.
When the applause subsided, Amelia began to speak,
“Jun Hyuk wrote this song. There are a total of eight songs from ‘Piano for One Hand’ to ‘Piano for 8 Hands’. You’ve probably already assumed this but the song we played today was ‘Piano for 4 Hands’. We uploaded the score to the campus intranet a short while ago. We hope anyone with interest will look it up.”
As soon as Amelia was done speaking, a few pianists left the theater to find their computers.
Professor Lenny Greenfield looked annoyed. He had discovered and led Amelia. It was just a short 5 minutes, but he could see the change in her better than anyone else could.
Her piano had become more free and mild. She even showed a warmth that was as if she had spread her wings wide, and anyone could rest under them. She was hiding the passion and strength that Greenfield himself had taught her in a deep place.
Everyone in the audience was cheering because it was such a high standard performance that they could feel what she had hidden even if she did not reveal it.
Professor Lenny Greenfield realized with today’s performance that he could no longer say that Amelia is a student that he trained. Amelia had a separate teacher.
Professor Randall Poster could not hide his bitter expression either as he saw the excitement of the audience.
‘Will it be a long time before we get to see Jun’s true self?’
Professor Poster wanted to see a passionate piano performance from Jun Hyuk that is comparable to Amelia’s. He had anticipated their explosive piano to ring throughout the theater, but they had given a performance that only showed their fantastic teamwork.
‘Amelia is the only one who is developing infinitely, thanks to Jun.’
Pianissimo that could be heard throughout a lively march like a faint bell. The average person would have found it difficult to distinguish which fingers the sounds were coming from, but it is possible for an expert like Randall Poster to make a clear distinction.
He could tell who it was even with his eyes close. Professor Poster was certain that Amelia had grown to the point where she could leave the school soon.
‘She’s quite a lucky girl, that Amelia…..’
Jun Hyuk had appeared when she needed someone like him. Then development through a deep relationship. The best teacher Amelia had met is not Professor Lenny Greenfield, but Jun Hyuk.